Written by: Alex Green

For fans of Lee Mavers and the La’s, news is an accepted scarcity.

Mavers hasn’t put out any new music since his band’s self-titled 1990 classic and though there have been various reports over the last three decades that he’s been working on new material, nothing yet has been released.

So a sighting of the reclusive singer/songwriter at the UK-based Groovefarm Analog Recording Co. just before Christmas is a rare and exciting thing.

On their FB page the studio had a shot of Mavers behind the drum kit with the caption: “It’s all hands on deck here this week. With exciting custom builds underway, Sura Laynes nearing the end of their live album sessions, some lovely old gear getting installed ready for the new year. Even Mr Mavers has been drafted in to give the old Premiers a good pasting. One last push before we go into hibernation.”

Whether or not this means Mavers will be contributing to the Sura Laynes debut album or if he was there doing work of his own is not clear at this time.

However, given the studio’s mission statement, it makes sense that Mavers would be there even if he was just hanging out because it perfectly aligns with his own recording ideology. They describe themselves as: “A space designed to inspire and to capture live music in a totally analog format. Record live to Tape.”

Mavers’ struggle with recording was that it didn’t capture the dynamic of the songs in the real world and the kinetic quality of the music had its edges softened through modern production. Mavers publicly discounted The La’s debut almost as soon as it came out, referring to it as dull and not containing the real raw energy of the band. Pointedly, he told the NME in 1991 that he hated the album, describing it as “a snake with a broken back.”