They might be from Britain but the Windmills’ hearts seem to be in Brisbane, buried in Robert Forster’s backyard. Not a bad thing in my book.   --Chickfactor #13

 

Embarrassingly, I'd never even heard of this bunch til Jimmy released the single last year or so but I guess they've been trudging around England for the better part of a decade (I think some of their stuff dates back to the 80's?). Roy Thirlwall has got the voice of a guy whose seen many, many crusty pubs in his life and came out smiling out of each one. His pals (Tony Dan and Pete) lay down a nearly perfect jangly groove that brings to mind some of the best Go-Betweens material. Especially on a tune like "GoodNewsBadNews."   --Dagger

 

A bit of a time warp, this one. The Windmills formed back in 1987, released one single during C-86's heyday, and promptly broke up. Fast forward to 1998 when three fourths of the original members regrouped for a one-off Christmas gig. Matinee records caught wind of the "reunion" and contacted them about putting out some old Windmills material. Instead, the band decided to make a go of it and reentered the studio to record a new single, Three Sixty Degrees. A year later, they put out their first ever full-length album, Edge of August and it sounds like 1986 again. Jangle-mope at it's best, similar in sound to The Weather Prophets, House of Love, The Go-Betweens, and Lloyd Cole. For the most part, The Windmills combine beautiful, bright guitars with wry, self-consciously downbeat lyrics.   --Victorian Squid

 

The Windmills released one 7" in the 80s and were never heard of since, which explains why Jimmy thought they were no longer around. Turns out they were still going and so Jimmy does get to release something by them on his label! This is a CD album called Edge Of August. I never heard their original 7" but I'd be surprised if their sound has changed much since then, as this CD contains some very late 80s style indiepop. A pretty good collection of retro janglepop; particularly worth a listen are Tired And Emotional, Three Sixty Degrees, Bad Luck Charm, Edge Of August and Not My Fault, which are superb.   --Aquamarine

 

Si hace unas semanas hablábamos de The Visitors, ahora toca hacerlo de otros dos proyectos auspiciados por Matinée Recordings, igualmente influidos por el sonido independiente de los 80, pero ahora sin necesidad de recurrir a la arqueología: los británicos The Windmills y Melodie Group son proyectos vivos. Pese a ello, el primer single de los primeros data del año 88, pero gracias al esfuerzo del sello de Washington han reactivado su carrera primero con un single ("Three Sixty Degrees") y luego con "Edge Of August", doce canciones de ahora que parecen robadas al tiempo, que podr¡an estar bendecidas por The Go-Betweens o el primer Lloyd Cole, honestas combinaciones de indiepop incombustible.   --Informativos.net

 

Como o Hepburns, o Windmills também começou no final dos anos 80 e voltou somente no final dos 90. Em 88 lançou um single 7 polegadas intitulado “The Day Dawned On Me” (relançado em 2000 na compilação “The Sound of Leamington Spa Vol. 1”) e depois sumiu do mapa. O single “Three Sixty Degrees”, lançado em meados de 99 pela gravadora americana Matinée, marcou a volta da banda em grande estilo. Uma das melhores músicas daquele ano, recheada de guitarras jingle jangle brilhantes e um ar de pop adulto e amadurecido que lembram grandes nomes do indiepop clássico como Go-Betweens e East Village. O b-side “Bad Luck Charm” tem até slide-guitar e é mais lenta, mas não menos clássica. Esse single está presente na íntegra no álbum “Edge of August”, lançado no começo de 2000, que além dessas duas já citadas, conta com mais dez canções que deverão ser um prato cheio para os adoradores de indiepop clássico dos anos 80. A rápida e nervosa “Bad Days Will Went”, os riffs de guitarra de “GoodNewsBadNews”, que começa meio quebrada para cair num ótimo refrão, a linha de baixo e melancolia de “Want” fazem de “Edge of August” um dos melhores álbuns de (indie)pop adulto (mas sem ser cabeça e cerebral demais) e clássico de 2000. Para fãs de: Go-Betweens, Lloyd Cole, Pastels, East Village.   --Esquizofrenia