The Sleeping Years is the solo project for ex-

Catchers Catcher is a position in baseball and softball. When a batter takes their turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the (home) umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. In addition to this primary duty, the catcher ...

singer Dale Grundle.

Biography

Dale Grundle started The Sleeping Years by releasing a trilogy of home recorded EPs, ''You and Me Against the World'', ''Setting Fire to Sleepy Towns'' and ''Clocks and Clones'' throughout 2007. The EPs were limited to numbers ranging from 500–750 copies and were packaged in handmade sleeves created by the young design company Pika Pika. Upon their release the EPs garnered critical acclaim, featuring on

BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and Contemporary hit radio, current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including ...

’s Introducing, ''

the Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

''’s writer’s play list and on the cover mount of ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

'' and '' The Word''. Songs were also heavily played on

Gideon Coe Gideon Jon Quantrill Coe (born 22 September 1967) is a radio DJ, presenter, sportscaster, voiceover artist and journalist. Early career He began his broadcasting career in 1976 as a child presenter on the BBC One TV programme '' Why Don't You? ...

’s 6music show, Stuart Bailie’s BBC Radio show, and on French radio, having been championed by Bernard Lenoir. Grundle then played his first solo shows. He began working together with cellist Michelle So and recorded a video session for the website Le Cargo on a rooftop in the north of Paris. The duo also held a secret concert at the same venue (Septieme Ciel) for French webzine Popnews. They played across France, appearing at shows in Toulouse, Nevers and Paris. After returning to London, they began working on the first album. ''We're Becoming Islands One By One'' was recorded in London in December 2007. Grundle worked on the album alongside engineer Ian Dowling at the

Smokehouse Studios A smokehouse (North American) or smokery (British) is a building where meat or fish is cured with smoke. The finished product might be stored in the building, sometimes for a year or more.

and at the

Strongroom A bank vault is a secure room used by banks to store and protect valuables, cash, and important documents. Modern bank vaults are typically made of reinforced concrete and steel, with complex locking mechanisms and security systems. This article ...

. Tom Page from

Rothko Mark Rothko ( ; Markus Yakovlevich Rothkowitz until 1940; September 25, 1903February 25, 1970) was an American abstract painter. He is best known for his color field paintings that depicted irregular and painterly rectangular regions of colo ...

was invited to play drums on the record and shortly afterwards became a full-time member. Also performing on the record was Ben Eshmade who provided French horn on the song "Human Blues". So played cello and Grundle performed all the vocals and guitars, bass, Hammond organ, Rhodes piano and e-bow parts. The album was released in 2008 on

Talitres Records Talitres, formerly known as Talitres Records, is a French independent record label based in Bordeaux, founded in 2000 and specializing in indie pop and folk music. It began as a way to release music from indie rock bands that were not distribute ...

in France and by

Rocketgirl Rocket Girl is a London-based independent record label. It has released records by Robin Guthrie, Pieter Nooten, God Is an Astronaut, Ulrich Schnauss, A Place to Bury Strangers, Bell Gardens (band), Bell Gardens among others, including many a ...

in the UK and Ireland to great reviews: "A record that only Bon Iver's ‘For Emma, Forever Ago’ has really rivaled in recent months. (Drowned in Sound) In 2007, Grundle collaborated with Mark Beazley from Rothko on a track entitled "While December Turns" for the Arctic Circle Xmas album ''That Fuzzy Feeling''. In 2008, he worked with songwriter

Ted Barnes Clayhill was a British three-piece folk band comprising Ali Friend, Ted Barnes and vocalist Gavin Clark. They released their debut album ''Small Circle'' in 2004, and released two EPs and another LP, ''Mine at Last'' (2006). Throughout the summe ...

on a song called "This Old World Grown Quiet" for the Arctic Circle's ''That Fuzzy Feeling'' EP. The Sleeping Years have toured across Europe, including dates supporting

Bowerbirds Bowerbirds () make up the bird family Ptilonorhynchidae. They are renowned for their unique courtship behaviour, where males build a structure and decorate it with sticks and brightly coloured objects in an attempt to attract a mate. The family ...

Damien Jurado Damien Troy Jurado (; born November 12, 1972) is an American singer-songwriter from Seattle, Washington, United States. Over the years, he has released albums on Sub Pop, Secretly Canadian, Loose, and is currently on his own label, Maraqopa Recor ...

Scout Niblett Emma Louise Niblett (born 29 September 1973), better known by the stage name Scout Niblett, is an English singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. Niblett debuted in 2001 with her first full-length studio album ''Sweet Heart Fever'', and h ...

Edwyn Collins Edwyn Stephen Collins (born 23 August 1959) is a Scottish musician, producer and record label owner. Collins was the lead singer for the 1980s post-punk band Orange Juice, which he co-founded. After the group split in 1985, Collins started a so ...

The Notwist The Notwist are a German indie rock band. Formed in 1989, the band moved through several musical incarnations, despite maintaining a relatively stable line-up. While their early records moved through heavy metal into dark indie rock, their re ...

and

Okkervil River Okkervil River is an American rock band led by singer-songwriter Will Sheff. Formed in Austin, Texas, in 1998, the band takes its name from a short story by Russian author Tatyana Tolstaya set on the river Okkervil in Saint Petersburg. They bega ...

. "You and Me Against the World" was featured in

Jamie Oliver Jamie Trevor Oliver Order of the Star of Italy, OSI (born 27 May 1975) is an English celebrity chef, restaurateur and cookbook author. He is known for his casual approach to cuisine, which has led him to front numerous television shows and o ...

's series ''Jamie's American Road Trip''.

Discography

Albums

*''We're Becoming Islands One By One'' 2008

EPs

*''You and Me Against the World'' 2007 *''Setting Fire to Sleepy Towns'' 2007 *''Clocks and Clones'' 2007

Singles

*"Into Sunlight" 2009

Compilations

*''That Fuzzy Feeling'' 2007 (Loaf Recordings) *''That Fuzzy Feeling'' EP 2008 (Static Caravan) *''Ten'' 2009 (Trace Recordings) *''3...2...1... A Rocket Girl Compilation'' (Rocket Girl)

References

1. Gourlay, Dom (2008
Drowned in Sound review of 'We're becoming islands one by one'

2. Walters, John L.(2007
The Guardian review of 'That Fuzzy Feeling'
br /> 3. Bailie, Stuart (2007
BBC Radio Ulster review of 'Setting fire to Sleepy towns EP'
br /> 4. Clayton-Lea, Tony (2008

br /> 5. Gorin, Francois (2008
Telerama review of 'We're becoming islands one by one'
br /> 6

External links

Official website for The Sleeping Years
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sleeping Years, The British folk music groups Rocket Girl artists