Sophie Ellis-Bextor’s old band Theaudience announce deluxe reissue of debut album

Theaudience have announced their return with a deluxe vinyl reissue of their sole, eponymous 1998 album, sharing with the news a rarity titled ‘Boutique In My Backyard’.

Fronted by Sophie Ellis-Bextor, who made her mainstream breakthrough as a solo artist in the early 2000s, Theaudience were active for three years, between 1996 and 1999.

The Britpop group had a string of singles from their debut LP, including ‘If You Can’t Do It When You’re Young; When Can You Do It?’ and ‘A Pessimist Is Never Disappointed’. They disbanded after a set of demos recorded for their second album – which was never formally released – were rejected by Mercury Records.

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Now, guitarist Billy Reeves has announced a reissue of Theaudience’s self-titled album will arrive on April 30. The 2LP set, which Reeves says will include “extras and [sleeve notes] and lyrics and so-forth”, features six bonus tracks, all of which were also released as B-sides on CD and vinyl singles ahead of the album’s August 1998 release.

One such track is ‘Boutique In My Backyard’, initially released as a CD-exclusive bonus on the single ‘I Know Enough (I Don’t Get Enough)’. According to Reeves, that will also be released on a seven-inch zoetrope vinyl. You can listen to that below – pre-orders for the vinyl reissue of ‘Theaudieence’ are available now.

 

Interestingly, Ellis-Bextor is yet to acknowledge the new release on any of her social media platforms. Tonight (March 7) will see the singer perform at Birmingham Symphony Hall, marking the first show of her 17-date ‘Kitchen Disco’ tour. She’ll play across the UK throughout March, wrapping up on Wednesday March 30 in London. Tickets for the run are on sale now via Ticketmaster.

Inspired by her viral karaoke series of the same name, the tour will feature campy, disco-inspired outfits and aesthetics, as well as a picker wheel that will dictate her and her band’s setlists for each night.

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Last November, Ellis-Bextor raised over £1million for BBC Children In Need with a 24-hour ‘Kitchen Disco’ livestream.