The recently revived Factory Benelux imprint next month will reissue the Martin Hannett-produced Swimming — the lone album released by Brussels-based post-punk act The Names during its original run — on CD and vinyl, featuring a remastered version of the original 1982 record plus non-album singles and a Peel session.
Due out Feb. 11 in the U.K., the 16-track CD and 18-track 2LP reissues actually bear slightly different tracklists, with the vinyl edition featuring bonus tracks “Music for Someone,” “The Astronaut” and “Spectators Of Life” that don’t appear on the CD, while the CD has one song, “Postcards,” that’s not on the 2LP set. Both, however, feature the band’s four-song Peel session, recorded in February 1982.
The Names worked with Hannett, who produced Joy Division, between 1979 and 1982, recording a string of singles (“Nightshift,” “Calcutta,” “The Astronaut”) and the full-length Swimming for the Factory, Factory Benelux and Les Disques du Crépuscule labels before disbanding.
The band reunited in 1995 under the name Jazz, and then again in 2007 under its original name, releasing a new album, Monsters Next Door, in 2009.
Below, check out the reissue’s tracklists and stream newly remastered track “Life By the Sea.”
Tracklist: The Names, Swimming (CD reissue)
1. “Discovery”
2. “Floating World”
3. “The Fire”
4. “Life By the Sea”
5. “White Shadow”
6. “Harmony”
7. “Shanghai Gesture”
8. “Leave Her to Heaven”
9. “Light”
10. “Calcutta”
11. “Postcards”
12. “Nightshift”
13. “Life By the Sea” (Peel Session)
14. “Discovery” (Peel Session)
15. “Shanghai Gesture” (Peel Session)
16. “Harmony” (Peel Session)
Tracklist: The Names, Swimming (2LP reissue)
LP 1
1. “Discovery”
2. “Floating World”
3. “The Fire”
4. “Life By The Sea”
5. “White Shadow”
6. “Harmony”
7. “Shanghai Gesture”
8. “Leave Her To Heaven”
9. “Light”
LP 2
1. “Music for Someone”
2. “Calcutta”
3. “Nightshift”
4. “The Astronaut”
5. “Spectators Of Life”
6. “Life By the Sea” (Peel Session)
7. “Discovery” (Peel Session)
8. “Shanghai Gesture” (Peel Session)
9. “Harmony” (Peel Session)
An exciting release! I can’t wait.
Fantastic album – one of the most underrated ever of the post punk era.
Pumped for this upcoming reissue. A hidden gem in the Factory catalog. Along with The Stockholm Monsters and The Wake, The Names never really got the credit they deserved. Besides… who wouldn’t mind owning another copy of this album :-)
Wow! Didn’t expect to see this one deluxed out. Very cool, buried treasure.
It’s nice to see the revival of Factory Benelux. However, this has been reissued in recent years under the LTM imprint with a stronger track listing. On the LTM issue, the original LP is split so this release issues the LP in original form and adds the singles/b-sides at the end.
The other main difference is the inclusion of the Peel Session – but this is done at the expense of the non-LP tracks.
http://www.discogs.com/Names-Swimming-Singles/release/883388