The debut album from Jem Tayle (Shelleyan Orphan) and Boris Williams (The Cure)
Age of Loneliness, the vibrant, eclectic debut album from Vamberator, is out now on blue Vinyl LP, gold Compact Disc, or as a limited edition LP / CD bundle (until the end of February 2025) from Maracash Records. Age of Loneliness is also available as a digital download from Bandcamp, and streaming from Spotify and all major digital music platforms.
Age of Loneliness (Unifaun Productions / Maracash Records, January 2025) is the debut album from the magical funky hybrid that is Vamberator: the first new collaboration between surviving Shelleyan Orphan members, Jemaur Tayle and Boris Williams (The Cure), since the untimely passing of their longtime bandmate, Caroline Crawley in 2016. In July 2024, Jem Tayle described for the press his and Boris’s transition from Shelleyan Orphan to Vamberator:
“After Caroline’s passing, I had been offered the chance to make a solo album. I had been writing on and off without a focus, and not having someone to bounce off was new to me. Boris is family, and we have played together with Shelleyan Orphan live and in the studio on and off for years, so it felt very natural for us to work on this together. I am extremely fortunate to have a drummer of his calibre pounding out the rhythms on this album.”
Boris and Jem’s close relationship goes back to when Jemaur Tayle and Caroline Crawley were recording the second Shelleyan Orphan album, Century Flower (1989), for legendary indie label Rough Trade, with producer David M. Allen. At the same time, Boris Williams was recording with The Cure for their landmark album, Disintegration, also with Dave Allen as producer. The Cure became fans of Shelleyan Orphan, whom Robert Smith invited to join The Cure on tour. The two bands became firm friends on the ensuing Prayer Tour, with the final show ending with Shelleyan Orphan joining The Cure onstage for the extended improvised finale, ‘Forever’.
Both Boris and The Cure’s guitarist Pearl (née Porl) Thompson went on to play on Shelleyan Orphan’s third album, Humroot (1992), before Shelleyan Orphan effectively folded as a viable band, along with the Rough Trade label. In turn, Boris left The Cure in 1994, and with Caroline formed a new band, Babacar: also featuring Pearl Thompson, and Shelleyan Orphan bassist Roberto Soave. They were soon joined in the project by Jem Tayle and, following Thompson’s departure, Rob Steen, releasing the album Babacar in 1998. Jem, Caroline, and Boris remained close friends and family ever since, reuniting as Shelleyan Orphan for their final album, We Have Everything We Need (2008). Sadly, however, following a long illness, Caroline Crawley passed away in 2016. Days later, while on tour in Helsinki, The Cure dedicated ‘Last Dance’ to Caroline.
Age of Loneliness by Vamberator
The new Vamberator album’s highly anticipated physical release today (Friday 31 January) was preceded on Thursday with the premiere of the latest promo-single, ‘Imps’: a glorious, soulful, and unabashedly joyous indie pop-rock anthem, laden with riffs and hooks. The homespun DIY video, meanwhile, features Jem and Boris playing in their respective homes, between Bath, UK and the south of France.
‘Imps’ is the fourth promo single lifted from the Age of Loneliness album, following the widely acclaimed debut single, ‘Sleep the Giant of Sleeps’; the 1970s New York soul and R&B-inspired ‘I Used to Be Lou Reed’; and the kooky-meets-spooky Halloween glam stomp of ‘Creature in My House’.