Track Listing

1. Christian Girls
2. Lee Remick
3. Pull Yourself Together
4. Blind Girl With Halo
5. Hello Kitten
6. Destroyed Cowboy Falls
7. Hymn for the Coffee
8. Mary Lee
9. Hymn for the Things We Didn't Do
10. To Hide a Little Thought
11. Science Fiction
12. Twisting Mary's Arm
13. We Don't Care What They Say

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #89201 in Music
• Released on: 2000-04-18
• Number of discs: 1
• Format: Best of

From Amazon.co.uk
Hefner are the type of band that cult followings were designed for. Outsiders refer to them as quirky, see their distressed and loveless tales ("Hello Kitten" with it's jaunty chorus of "I'm gonna make myself go blind tonight") as amusing and consider their angsty guitar stabs "novelty songs". Devotees have quite a different view. For them Hefner are the honest, intelligent and sincere alternative to pop's processed emotions and saccharine lyrics. And Hefner releases don't come much more honest and sincere than this collection of rarities and b-sides, made up of a clutch of unreleased live favourites and tracks recorded for the BBC (most of which were for their biggest fan, John Peel). This is one for the fans, and the fans alone--a stripped down take on Darren Hayman's neurotic, emotionally wrought vocals, fragmented pop guitar insanity and obsession with minute lyrical details (like pre-stardom Jarvis Cocker). And with classically perky and punky versions of Hefner classics "Christian Girls" and "Pull Yourself Together" and a beautifully tender and previously unreleased rendition of "Lee Remick"--a countrified ode to family history--the faithful will not be disappointed. --Dan Gennoe

Customer Reviews

Buy used
Some decent songs, but nothing that compelling- the album as a whole has a consistent vision that elevates it, but not to 4 star status.

For fans of Modern Lovers
"Christian Girls should be kept pristine and totally devoid of pain, I can't hold back the rain , the dirty, dirty rain." I'm a huge fan of Hefner's debut album, Breaking God's Heart, but was a bit let down by their second effort, The Fidelity Wars. Boxing Hefner returns to form with twelve rare and unreleased tracks from these lovelorn uber-geeks. "Christian Girls" is the song that convinced Too Pure to sign Hefner in the first place -- a hysterical take on religious purity presented, true to form, with its sexuality on its sleeves. Highlights include a mesmerizing John Peel performance of "The Science Fiction" and the band's traditional closing number at shows, "Twisting Mary's Arm." Throughout, Darren Hayman's cracked, plaintive vocals are reminiscent of white suburbanite Mark Robinson attempting black soul on early Unrest albums, or perhaps more directly, Jonathan Richman singing to his Boston girlfrens with the Modern Lovers. In fact, one of the strongest performances on Boxing Hefner is "To Hide A Little Thought," which rescues Richman's poignant relationship confessional from the now out-of-print You Must Ask the Heart. With hook upon hook and energy to spare, Hefner take Richman's themes from the New England bars to the UK pubs. For wimpy suburban boys everywhere.

Essential Hefner
A sure sign of a band's excellence is making b-sides that are just as good - or indeed better - as the actual single. Judging from the impact Boxing Hefner has had on me in the relative short time I've owned it, Hefner are right up there with The Smiths, Belle & Sebastian et al. Darren Hayman's sometimes painfully personal lyrics and his soulful, admittedly not perfect vocals never cease to intruige och move me. As for the tunes, they're perfect bittersweet gems that at least I find impossible to resist. Songs like Pull Yourself Together, the previously unreleased The Science Fiction and Lee Remick surely prove that there is still hope for Britain's indie scene. If there is any justice in the world, this will be Hefner's proper breakthrough.