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This year marks the 11th anniversary of Nottingham’s Tindersticks, who are busy reinventing themselves with their latest album.

Can Our Love... by Tindersticks

Formed in the summer of 1992, Nottingham’s Tindersticks have long been known for a lush trademark sound, typically described as falling somewhere between Leonard Cohen and John Cale. The release of the band’s latest recordings – and their record label move also sees them subtly moving in a new musical direction.

The latest chapter in their journey form the early days – when they traded under their original moniker Asphalt Ribbons – to today, begins with the release of Can Our Love... their fifth studio album. Ten years into a diverse and prolific career, the band have had a change of record label – moving to Beggars Banquet - and are now making a largely soul-based music that would have been unimaginable to many fans of the band in the early '90s.

Reinvention

The reinvention of Tindersticks has not been an overnight phenomenon, but has taken place gradually over the last couple of years. Can Our Love... is the sound of a band that survived a period of uncertainty and came out the other end feeling sure-footed and inspired. "When I listen to this record now, it's got a wholeness to it," says singer Stuart Staples. "It sounds sure of itself. It holds its head up and looks you in the eye."

For those who are counting, Can Our Love... is the follow-up to 1999's Simple Pleasure, the final album to be released under Tindersticks' previous contract with Universal/Island Records. Rather overlooked at the time, Simple Pleasure suffered a little - in the opinion of the band - from being too consciously geared towards a pre-agreed sound. "We'd lost the freedom in our music," says Staples. "We were trying too hard". Following an extensive tour to accompany that album, Tindersticks and Universal/Island Records parted company.

Soundtracks

Rather than look for a new deal immediately, the band took several months to figure out where they wanted to go, and how they hoped to get there. Ultimately these discussions led to a change of management, a four-album deal with Beggars Banquet and a commission to do a film soundtrack – marking the groups’ second foray into this genre. This time, the recordings were for the new film by Claire Denis - Trouble Every Day – which is set to be released next year, starring Beatrice Dalle and Vincent Gallo.

"I think the record is everything that Simple Pleasure was trying to be," says Staples of the new recording. "This is the first record we've made in a long time where ideas came from everywhere - all six members contributing to the songwriting. We'd go into the studio, play a couple of songs a couple of times, leave the tape running and maybe play another song. We probably only recorded for two or three hours a day. We didn't want to hammer the life out of the songs."

The nucleus of Can Our Love... is its three lengthy songs, People Keep Comin' Around, Sweet Release and the title track Can Our Love.... Taking inspiration from a wide range of artists - Curtis Mayfield, Bobby Womack, Tim Hardin and the Velvet Underground all come to mind on listening to it through - this record shows the band putting more emphasis on rhythm and pulse than ever before. Benefiting from superb brass and string arrangements by Dickon Hinchliffe, the album showcases a series of extended late-night grooves that are eminently listenable.

"Music that we want to listen to"

"Our criterion has always been to make music that we want to listen to," says Staples. "There are songs on this album that I'm really proud to have been involved in. I can't really ask for anything more than that. I almost want to go in and make the next album straight away. Everyone in the band feels good about what we're doing. It feels like we've still got plenty of challenges ahead of us."

Apart from four live albums, a host of singles and a host of singles and EP's the bands back catalogue includes the most recent: Trouble Everyday (original soundtrack)Can Our Love... (Beggars Banquet), two albums, both called Tindersticks, -one in 1993 and the other 1995 - Nenette et Boni (original soundtrack), (1996), Curtains (1997), Donkeys 1992 - 1997 (1998) and Simple Pleasure (1999).

Can Our Love... is out now on Beggars Banquet.

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