Tompaulin were an indie pop band formed in Blackburn, Lancashire, England in 1999, and named after the Northern Irish poet, critic, and lecturer Tom Paulin.
The band initially comprised Stacey McKenna (vocals), Simon "Tap" Trought (guitar), Jamie Holman (vocals/guitar/words), and Ciaron Melia (drums), although the line-up changed several times with other members including Amos Memon (drums), Katie Grocott (bass), Giles Cooke (banjo/guitar), and Lee Davies (keyboards).Strong, Martin C. (2003) "Tompaulin", in The Great Indie Discography, Canongate, The band released five singles on the Action Records, Track & Field, and Ugly Man labels, before the release of their debut album, The Town and the City in 2001. The album was called "amazingly self-assured, confident and among the best releases of 2001" by Flak magazine.Wittmershaus, Eric (2001) "Tompaulin The Town and the City", Flak The band were often compared to Belle & Sebastian, and their music was described by Kitty Empire in the NME as "equal parts beguiling and entertaining",Kitty Empire (2001) "Tompaulin: It's a Girl's World", NME, 18 January 2001Clancy, Ben (2001) "Tompaulin/Kicker/The Gospel Oak: London Aldgate East Arts Cafe", NME, 11 January 2001 while The Times described them as "exactly the right balance between grim reality and the chord sequences that lift you out of it".Edwards, Mark (2005) "Tompaulin: Into the Black", The Times, 9 January 2005 A further single followed on Track & Field in 2002, and the band went on to release two further albums on the label before splitting up.
The band recorded two sessions for John Peel's BBC Radio 1 show, in 2000 and 2001.Tompaulin at the BBC's Keeping It Peel site
Discography Singles "Ballad of the Bootboys" (1999) Action Carcrash EP (2000) Action "Slender" (2000) Action "It's a Girl's World" (2001) Track & Field "My Life at the Movies" (2001) Ugly Man "Give Me a Riot in the Summertime" (2002) Track & Field
Albums The Town and the City (2001) Ugly Man Into the Black (2005) Track & Field Everything was Beautiful and Nothing Hurt (2006) Track & Field
References
External links Tompaulin on Myspace