We think you can get the measure of a band by what doesn't make it on to their primary singles and LPs for whatever reason, and this release is a good indication of the depth of material available to the Green Pajamas at the moment. "Narcotic Kisses" is an "Odds'n'Sods" style selection of 12 rare and unreleased tracks from the vaults of these Seattle-based pop masters. Two tracks "The are the Best Times" and "Vampire Crush" were released on a very limited lathe- cut Camera Obscura single in January 1999 - it sold out on release and we still get requests for it. "Song for Christina/A Nightmare" was given away as an MP3 single-of-the-month, and is an awe-inspiringly Gothic reworking of an earlier single. "The Fall" was on our 1998 compilation "Serotonin Ronin" as a bonus track. The other six tracks are previously unreleased. Some are outtakes from the sessions for the recent albums "All Clues Lead To Meagan's Bed" and "Seven Fathoms Down and Falling", and some were just sitting around looking for a project like this to bring them into the light.

Far from being second rate or disposable, this is material right up with the Pajamas' best recent work, and will have their legion of fans astonished all over again. The opener "I've Got a Crush on You" is Jeff Kelly in sublime West Coast folk-rock mode washing the record in on tides of accordion. "Demon Lover" (unaccountably left off the Woronzow release "Seven Fathoms Down and Falling") and "The Ravenna Witch" effortlessly mix misty gothic progressive touches with trademark power pop, the latter containing some of Kelly's noisiest ever blasts of guitar mayhem - a salute perhaps to the grunge tide that came and went in the blink of an eye in Pajamas terms. "If Tomorrow Comes" would be a top ten hit in a sane world, timeless riff an melody spelling out another chapter in the Pajamas' thematic espionage chic obsession. An "Ballerina" is prime Euro café psychedelia, lounge stylings offset by lysergic concluding instrumental break.

The band was didn't want to release these tracks with any fanfare, so we took the opportunity to do a very limited 220g audiophile vinyl pressing as the only format in which this record will be available for the time being.

Other resources:

CAM005CD - Green Pajamas - Strung Behind the Sun

CAM014CD - Green Pajamas - Strung Out

CAM020CD - Green Pajamas - All Clues Lead To Meagan's Bed

CAM045CD - Green Pajamas - Northern Gothic