Stapleton - Rest and Be Thankful

“All good things must come to an end,” laments Stapleton’s Al Paxton on Absent Friends, apparently prepared to ride the cliché. Having literally scattered themselves to the four winds, it’s admirable to see that the Brooklyn/Dundee/Glasgow-based quartet haven’t allowed geography to put the kibosh on this strong sequel to 2005’s excellent Hug the Coast. Although Rest and Be Thankful is essentially a melting pot of new material and revamped rarities, it’s nevertheless a cohesive addition to their understated and underrated emotive rock canon. Recorded “in a remote Scottish barn” by Robin Sutherland (Laeto, Copy Haho), from the lush melodies of From Wood to Ridge to the chilling ambience of Tonight We Will Carry Him Home, these sparse surroundings are worn well and perhaps the only weak wood in the tree is found in the listless instrumental Asking For You. To fans of Pavement, Pinback, and everything in between: don’t let this lot slip through your fingers again. [Dave Kerr]