Belle and Sebastian released their first two albums in 1996: Tigermilk, recorded over three days, and If You're Feeling Sinister, recorded in a week, at the peak of the chamber pop movement. At first, some critics in Britain's music weeklies tied the band into the subgenre, yet the group was too pretty, too delicate, to bear that label. Through their first two years of public existence, the band shielded their personalities, submitting publicity photos featuring a girl, who was a friend of the band and reluctantly posing for photo shoots. Furthermore, they performed in odd venues, playing not only the standard coffeehouses and cafes, but also homes, church halls, and libraries.
Prior to the formation of Belle and Sebastian, Murdoch suffered from a protracted battle with chronic fatigue syndrome, which forced him to drop out of school and spend seven years living in his parents' home crippled by his condition.Whilst in his parents home, Murdoch wrote a short story about a boy named Sebastian and a girl named Isabelle based on the names from Madame Cecile Aubery's children's book Belle et Sebastian. On New Year's Day 1996, Stuart attended a party at which he met a young singer and cellist named Isobel Campbell. In a letter to his brother Fraser, Murdoch explained how he was making a single for Stow college at the end of February. Murdoch opted to use the name Belle&Sebastian for the project because it was occupying him at the time. Murdoch took to songwriting as an escapism from the four walls surrounding him in his room and eventually recorded demos with bassist Stuart David whom he met at a government training programme called Beatbox. Murdoch quickly met a series of other musicians through social and musical circles in his hometown Glasgow and they agreed to help with the Stow project. The members he found for this initial lineup were Stevie Jackson (guitar), Mick Cooke (trumpet), Chris Geddes (keyboards), Stuart David (bass), Richard Colburn (drums), and Isobel Campbell (cello). The Stow College record was to be issued by Electric Honey, but it turned into a full album. The course instructor Alan Rankine determined that Murdoch had enough good material to record a full LP and could do so if they could get it all done in three days, studio time allotted for the single. Murdoch and his musicians rose to the challenge and recorded ten tracks putting the songs in order as they would appear on the record and mostly completing them in just a few takes.
In May of 1996, Belle and Sebastian self-released their debut album, Tigermilk, on Electric Honey Records. Only 1,000 copies of the album, which was only pressed on vinyl, were released, but it unexpectedly became a sensation, earning terrific word of mouth throughout the UK. As a result, the band became slightly more than a school project — it became an actual band. If You're Feeling Sinister, released on the independent Jeepster label, followed in November of 1996. By the time the album was released in America on the EMI subsidiary The Enclave, it had earned considerable critical acclaim in the U.K. — not only from music weeklies, but from newspapers like The Sunday Times and magazines like The Face — and a large cult following; by some accounts, Tigermilk was being sold for as much as 75 pounds. Over the course of 1997, word of mouth continued to grow in America, even as the band pulled out of an American tour because The Enclave went bankrupt and closed.
As the band cult continued to build in 1997, Belle and Sebastian released three EPs — Dog on Wheels (May), Lazy Line Painter Jane (July), and 3.. 6.. 9 Seconds of Light (October). Each subsequent EP placed higher on the indie charts and received great critical acclaim. Later in the year, violinist Sarah Martin became a member of the band. By the end of the year, the group finalized an American deal with Matador Records, issuing The Boy With the Arab Strap in September 1998. The following year saw the eagerly anticipated wide re-release of Tigermilk, the album that started it all. It was the biggest selling album but is unpopular with the group themselves. Following completion of 2000's Fold Your Hands Child, You Walk Like a Peasant, Stuart David left Belle and Sebastian to focus full-time on his solo project, Looper, being replaced by Bobby Kildea of V-Twin. In 2001, the group released two EPs — Jonathan David and I'm Waking Up to Us — and recorded the soundtrack for Todd Solondz's film Storytelling. Just before the soundtrack's release in spring 2002, Belle and Sebastian embarked on a comprehensive tour of the United States and Canada before returning to Europe for the summer festival season. Midway through the tour, Isobel Campbell left the band, citing the usual differences.
Another major change that soon took place was the band leaving Jeepster and Matador to sign with Rough Trade, with their next record, late 2003's Dear Catastrophe Waitress, produced by the inimitable Trevor Horn (who also produced Frankie Goes to Hollywood, Yes, and scores of others). The record spawned the brilliant "Step into My Office, Baby" and "I'm a Cuckoo" singles, the latter of which was the group's biggest U.K. hit, reaching number 14 in early 2004. After a long worldwide tour that found Belle and Sebastian reaching new levels of success, they retired to Scotland and began preparing for the recording of their seventh full length album, The Life Pursuit, released in 2006.
In 2010, they released their eighth full length album, Write About Love.
Official website: www.belleandsebastian.com
There's Too Much Love
Belle and Sebastian Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I've been hanging out here waiting for something to start
You think I'm faultless to a 't'
My manner set impeccably
But underneath I am the same as you
I could dance all night like I'm a soul boy
But I know I'd rather drag myself across the dance floor
Where no one knows me, and where i
Can cause offence just by the way I look
And when I come to blows
When I am numbering my foes
Just hope that you are on my side my dear
But it's best to finish as it started
With my face head down just staring at the brown formica
It's safer not to look around
I can't hide my feelings from you now
There's too much love to go around these days
You say I've got another face
That's not a fault of mine these days
I'm honest, brutal and afraid of you
The opening lines of Belle and Sebastian's “There’s Too Much Love” addresses willingness to take a chance despite the possibility of getting hurt. The singer reveals that they have been waiting around for a while for something to happen, but they haven’t done anything yet. They know that they might end up getting hurt, but they are willing to take the risk.
The singer seems to be hiding behind a facade of perfection or sterility. They mention how people see them as being impeccable, but in actuality, they are the same as every other person.
The melody of the song offers a contrast to the lyrics’ deeper meaning: it’s catchy, upbeat and one would smile while nodding their head to it. But it is an apt representation of the lyrics because it masks the singer’s interior struggles.
The chorus offers a somewhat contradictory statement, as they simultaneously declare their desire to dance alone, as well as their fear of being judged by how they look. The use of the word ‘offence’ highlights the vulnerability felt by the singer, indicating an underlying fear of persecution for simply existing outside of the norm.
The final lines of the song connote a sense of vulnerability, addressing their fear of other people’s reactions to their true selves. The line “there’s too much love to go around these days” is a new take on the concept of love being a finite thing. Rather than people fighting for limited resources of affection, there is almost an overload, creating feelings of unrest and unruliness.
Line by Line Meaning
I could hang about and burn my fingers
I am willing to take risks and get hurt in order to achieve something.
I've been hanging out here waiting for something to start
I have been waiting for something to happen or change, but nothing is happening.
You think I'm faultless to a 't'
You believe that I am perfect and have no flaws whatsoever.
My manner set impeccably
I conduct myself in a perfect and flawless manner.
But underneath I am the same as you
Despite my perfect exterior, I have the same fears and vulnerabilities as everyone else.
I could dance all night like I'm a soul boy
I could dance all night and pretend to be someone I am not.
But I know I'd rather drag myself across the dance floor
But in reality, I would rather be myself and dance awkwardly.
I feel like dancing on my own
I feel like being alone and not having to impress anyone.
Where no one knows me, and where i
A place where I can be anonymous and not judged by others.
Can cause offence just by the way I look
I don't want to be judged for my appearance alone.
And when I come to blows
And when I get into a conflict or altercation.
When I am numbering my foes
When I am counting my enemies or opponents.
Just hope that you are on my side my dear
I hope that you are my ally and support me in this situation.
But it's best to finish as it started
It's best to end things the way they started.
With my face head down just staring at the brown formica
With my head down, looking at the brown pattern on the table.
It's safer not to look around
It's safer to avoid looking at my surroundings and the people around me.
I can't hide my feelings from you now
I am unable to conceal or suppress my emotions from you anymore.
There's too much love to go around these days
There is an excess of love and affection in the world today.
You say I've got another face
You are accusing me of being two-faced or insincere.
That's not a fault of mine these days
I am not responsible for other people's perceptions of me.
I'm honest, brutal and afraid of you
I am truthful and direct with you, but I am also afraid of your judgement and reaction.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: CAMPBE, CHRISTOPHER GEDDES, ISOBEL CAMPBELL, MICHAEL COOKE, RICHARD COLBURN, SARAH MARTIN, STEPHEN JACKSON, STUART MURDOCH
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind