The Singles

They Say...

Review by Stephen Cramer, All Music Guide

On Singles Collection, a historical perspective of Seattle's Tullycraft emerges. The band rose out of the ashes of the bands Crayon and Wimp Factor 14, quickly building a fan base with their playful and sugary style of indie pop. This disc serves as a collection of songs culled from seven of the band's singles released on various record labels. The band, like many in the independent music community, often looked to release their music on 7" records instead of CDs. Songs are also featured from compilation CDs the band appeared on. A few of the tracks are songs from the band's Old Traditions, New Standards and City of Subarus CDs, with a few exclusive tracks adding to the disc's allure. The arrangement is mostly chronological, starting with "Skyway" from the band's True Blue EP on Harriet Records. "Pink Lemonade" is classic twee pop, while they mix tempos on "Bailey Park." "Pedal" strays from normal Tullycraft fare, with its dancehall-style beats, Sean Tollefson's spoken vocals, and Rose Melberg's backing vocals. The band focuses on high-school themes with "1st String Teenage High" and "Stay Cool I'll See You This Summer." The two songs are significant because they highlight the band's quirky, youthful nature. The disc includes a slew of cover songs, including Stephin Merritt's "Falling out of Love (With You)," Jonathan Richman's "They're Not Trying on the Dance Floor," and New Order's "Loveless." "Crush the Scene" is probably the catchiest of the exclusive songs on the disc. Some of the tracks at the end were recorded live on California's KUCI radio station. Overall, the collection served as the album to fill the gap between the release of City of Subarus and Beat, Surf, Fun.