Arab Strap are to celebrate both Scotland’s appearance in the European Championship finals, and 25 years since their first release, by giving away a special version of their debut single.
A largely vocal-free, karaoke, mix of ‘The First Big Weekend’ is available as a free download from the Falkirk duo’s Bandcamp page, enabling fans to record their own take on the indie classic.
The original, of course, details a weekend a quarter of a century ago, where the pair, and friends, embarked on a slightly debauched couple of days, which took in a trip to The Arches, some Simpsons watching, and in an odd coincidence, a Scotland vs England clash at Wembley (which the band slept through, “awaking to find that the English had won two-nil”).
The track also resurfaced in ‘dance’ form, a remix by Chemikal Underground labelmate Miaoux Miaoux, when the act reformed in 2016 – exactly five years ago.
As Aidan Moffat and Malcolm Middleton say of the new take on their iconic track: “Twenty-five years ago, we had a good weekend then wrote a song about it. It told a tale of a long-lost world, when nobody had a computer in their pocket, we all hugged and danced, and The Simpsons was brilliant.”
Speaking of the upcoming match, they add: “This time we’ll be awake, and watching with our children.
“You can use it to recite your own tales of pleasures past and new, or even just try to replicate Aidan’s husky, tiddly tones. If you record or film one, feel free to share it and let us know on Twitter – @ArabStrapBand.”
They also point out that anyone attempting to make money from the venture – unlikely, they admit – their lawyers will hunt the perpetrators down, and finally point out that the track is only available until Monday – “but if Scotland win their game on Friday, we’ll keep it online forever.”
More at arabstrap.scot.
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