For ten years, Simon Williams and his mates at Fierce Panda Records have been scouring the pubs and music halls of London to discover bands at their nascence. Doing exactly what it says on the cover, ‘Decade’ celebrates these last ten years by bringing together 18 of the finest, furriest, fuzziest tunes ever released by the label. For bands such as Coldplay, and Hundred Reasons, these panda tunes are unavailable on any other label. Many of the other songs are rare early versions of future top ten hits or simply long-since deleted singles.

Starting in 1994, the year brash tykes The Bluetones made their mark on the uber-rare panda double vinyl 7″ EP ‘Return To Splendour’, ‘Decade’ travels through the millennium and into 2004, where we find Keane and Death Cab For Cutie warming the hearts of sensitive souls on both sides of the Atlantic.

After searching through the attic and basement and blowing the dust off masters, ‘Decade’ sees the light of day on March 9, 2004 – almost exactly ten years since the ‘Shagging In The Streets’ EP crept out as Fierce Panda’s debut release. The end result is a remarkable catalogue of music assembled over the last decade, being made available in the States for the first time on Brash Music. Happy Anniversary Panda!

FEATURING:
Lo-Fidelity Allstars – Placebo
Bright Eyes – Hundred Reasons
Coldplay – The Polyphonic Spree
Death Cab for Cutie – This Girl
Seafood – The Calientele
Embrace – Six by Seven
The Music – Easyworld
The Bluetones – Kaito
(X) Is Greater Than (Y) – Keane

“10 years is a mighty long time for an indie label to exist, especially when it never planned on being around that long in the first place. UK tastemakers supreme Fierce Panda celebrate their 10 years of musical mayhem with the plainly stated Decade: 10 Years Of Fierce Panda. Showcasing some of the finest tunes found on the label over the years, Decade features some of the first UK releases ever from greats such as Coldplay, Placebo, The Music, and the Bluetones, as well as more nascent offspring Keane, Death Cab For Cutie and Hundred Reasons. The UK version even throws on early work from Ash, Idlewild, Supergrass, Kenickie and Three Colours Red, tracks that were unable to be included on the US version licensed to Brash Music. In listening to these early versions of great bands, as well as hidden gems from bands not as blatantly in the public spotlight, one thing is most evident: Simon Williams and his partners-in-crime at Fierce Panda sure know a good tune when they hear it.”

–Jack Alberson
FAC193.com