Mint Biscuit: Across The Pond (expanded)

Welsh musician Richard Thomas went back to his Across The Pond EP and decided that this release by his Mint Biscuit project could be improved. He changed the running order and added six more tracks. If anything the flow of the instrumentals is now more balanced by including the subtle The Barnstaple Table And The Fremulous Fable, the Neil Young-esque Mouse Trouble and the wordless love song Bodmin Chick.

The EP was more of a work-in-progress and by going back to the drawing board he was able to finish the picture. His homemade excursions are offering a glimpse into his inner world, where emotional turmoil, love for his wife and a passion for playing his six-strings are having neverending discussions.

Mint Biscuit: Songs & Poems + The Mintiest

Welsh musician Richard Thomas put together a collection of his writings for his one-man band Mint Biscuit, with some of his poetry thrown in for good measure. It is a big one - 328 pages, so Songs & Poems will be keeping the reader entertained for quite some time. He also assembled another "best of" album, The Mintiest, which contains 83 (!) tracks in alphabetical order of the home made guitar excursions he recorded over the years. That rather unusual bit of sequencing was made by mistake, but it makes for an oddball, hopscotch kind of listening, with plenty of happy accidents along the way.

For those who are not familiar with his music, a handy list of his influences can be found in the book: Beatles, Pink Floyd, Cream, Beach Boys, Simon & Garfunkel, Kinks, Kingsmen, Wings, Animals, Doors, Taste, The Jam, Canned Heat, REM, Dinosaur Jr, Nirvana, Kings Of Leon, Foo Fighters, Rage Against The Machine, Pearl Jam, Reef, Feeder, Spin Doctors, Deep Blue Something, Blur, Oasis, Pulp, Elbow, James, Stone Roses, Howlin' Wolf, Mississippi John Hurt, Pete Seeger, Bob Dylan, Muddy Waters, Chuck Berry, Jimi Hendrix, Wilfred Owen, Horace Andy, Max Bygraves, Phil Collins, Paul Weller, Kate Bush, Shirley Bassey, Tamsin West, Alison Moyet, Kelis, Prodigy.

Mint Biscuit: Across The Pond

Welsh musician Richard Thomas collected a bunch of loose sounding instrumentals to fill out the running order for the new EP Across The Pond by his Mint Biscuit project. The collection kicks off with two proper songs, wherein Thomas shows some trepidation while handling the vocals, but also getting more confident after a bit.

The instrumentals are a mixed bag - some of them are merely sketches, only showing the contours of an idea, but they will strike a chord by anyone who has ever picked up a guitar and trying to get something interesting out of it. Thomas is working on a new album, so changes are that some of these work-in-progress versions will transform into tracks that live up to their cool titles.

Mint Biscuit: Blue Green Yellow

Welsh musician Richard Thomas has rounded up 20 instrumentals from the back catalogue of his Mint Biscuit project and carefully sequenzed them for the new compilation album, Blue Green Yellow. If anything it shows his versatility as a player and it also offers the listener a glimpse at his guitar collection.

The blues is never far away, but there are also forays into rock (Mash All), pastoral psych pop (Banging Our Heads On The Brick Wall Of Life) and surf (no bonus points for guessing who is the inspiration for Wrink Lay). By letting his fingers do the talking, he often stumbles on a bit that just begs to be explored further or repeated, to which he dutifully complies most of the time.

Mint Biscuit: Mrs Magnolia b/w Roses For Rachel

Welsh musician Richard Thomas selected two tracks for a single from the Villain Of The Peace album by his one-man Mint Biscuit project. The folk-tinged Mrs Magnolia is song for his mother, inspired by a tree in her garden that was used as a goalpost back in the day - which was frowned upon, but the tree is totally fine today. The acoustic psychedelic Roses For Rachel, with some fresh new lyrics, is a gentle love song for his wife. He still can't believe that she is treating him so kindly as she does.

Mint Biscuit: Not Wading, But Drowning

Welsh musician Richard Thomas branches out a bit on Not Wading, But Drowning, the new album by his Mint Biscuit project. Mostly it is just him and his guitar, but he also reconnected with a couple of mates from his university and school days. On the blues rocker Blue Canary he was joined by Ian Elgy (harmonica) and Simon Edwards (tablas). Chris Spurgeon, who releases music under the Zebra Crossing Sounds alias, wrote and played most of the luscious pop song Feels Like Home, with Thomas leaning back safe for a bit of backing vocals. This change of pace worked out quite well and hopefully there will more of this in the future.

Thomas' sense of displacement has always been a major source of inspiration and his annoyances and pet peeves, both real and imaginary- the latter brought along by the voices in his head - come to the fore in Mo Mowlam's Meadow, A Good Year For Ears and Serve And Obey. Making music serves a release and bearing his soul is pretty brave thing to do, every time he plugs in his guitar and feels his way through the vocals. That being said he also cherishes the good things in life, like letting rip in Rock And Roll or staring at the sky thinking about his wife in Cumulonimbus. He brings the album to a close with a surprise cover, Pistyll Rhaeadr, a reimagination of Pistol of Fire, changing the location to a waterfall in his beloved Wales.

Mint Biscuit: Villain Of The Peace

Welsh musician Richard Thomas found himself being quite content but also out of his depth trying out a new guitar amp. The new toy can be heard on the new album Villain Of The Peace by his Mint Biscuit project, but as he is still figuring out what settings work best for him he also went back to his acoustic guitar, which works just fine as is.

The result is a mixed bag, with plenty of goodies, some of them a bit unpolished, but enjoyable nevertheless. Thomas mostly writes about things that are close to home, with a sharp eye for the mundane and the unusual in equal measures. Physical setbacks (Let's Get Metatarsical) and an animal in a spot of bother (Sheep Stuck) are captured in pastoral vignettes, that are quite elegant.

Mint Biscuit: Rolling Breakers + It's A Hardknott Life

To call Welsh musician Richard Thomas prolific would be a huge understatement. Keeping up with his steady flow of home-grown albums by his Mint Biscuit project is quite a challenge. He compiled two "best of" collections that will suit fans of guitar music and passionate vocals. With Rolling Breakers and It's A Hardknott Life buyers will have a near complete collection - 72 tracks - of all his songs with vocals. It is still a lot to digest, but it it is totally worth it.

Mint Biscuit: In The Green Room

Richard Thomas offers both sides of his craft on In The Green Room, the latest album by his Mint Biscuit project: rocking instrumentals and a couple of soul-searching songs about everyday hassles and lucky breaks. The former sees him exploring a more vintage guitar tone, with just a hint of surf as he bends the strings to stretch the notes a bit, with Prawn Risotto, Return To The Drawing Board, and Mustang Hunting as the stand-out musings.

Thomas can get lost in his own world at times, but he does the slam the door in the face of the listener. It is perfectly alright to enter and see and hear what he is up to. It takes a lot of nerve to sing about feeling really sick (Mutating Germs) and worrying it will be the end of him. Lucky for him, he always has his guitar collection and assortment of pedals to look forward to when the fever or other things to make one's life miserable subsides. With each release, he inches a bit more forward. He has found his niche and now it is time to make himself comfortable, touch things up here and there. Or get himself yet another guitar to master.

Mint Biscuit: Take Courage

Despite announcing that he would be taking a break from new releasing music, Welsh singer and guitarist Richard Thomas could not help himself to release another album by his one-man band Mint Biscuit. On Take Courage the main theme is to carry on and start again, even when the odds are not exactly favourable.

The album was inspired by the Top Swimmers who jump into Bassenthwaite Lake, come rain and shine. Thomas often has to remind himself that he is one of the good guys, so why not do so in a boatload of languages (Fabuloso) or point to his strengths alongside his weaknesses (Please Understand Me). If life from outer space should decide to make contact, he won't reach for a gun, but offer them something to eat (Alien Sandwich) instead.

Mint Biscuit: Mouth Like A Rocker; Mint: Leaving It Late (2022 reissue)

Richard Thomas goes for a rough-around-the-edges approach on Mouth Like A Rocker, the new album by his one-man project Mint Biscuit. His hard rock side comes to the fore in I'm A Big Metal Fan and the bluesy The Jaguine Article. Being the proud owner of a couple of cool axes - he used a Squier Jazzmaster, a Squier Jaguar, an Epiphone ES-339, and an Epiphone Les Paul, allowed to explore various moods and tunings. As for the album's title: it is a pun on his place of residence Cockermouth. And yes, he has heard all the lame jokes about that already.

Power chords sit comfortably next to single notes. Playing by intuition is not without risks - a tune can fall apart quite easily - but Thomas has a firm grip on when he wants to go. In this case a bit louder than his usual shtick, but it worked out quite well. He might be working his working to thrash metal or something equally challenging.

Billy Rich and the Naked Flames: Side Hustle Biscuits

Billy Rich and the Naked Flames is a Transatlantic collaboration between Richard P Thomas (Cockermouth, England) and Billy L Schaefer (NY, USA), who bonded over a shared love for guitar driven rock.

The two tracks on Side Hustle Biscuits (a pun inspired by the name of Thomas' one-man project Mint Biscuit) are like two sides of the coin lyrically. No Blankets Required is optimistic, feeling cozy with a loved one nearby. North-Easter is rather bleak, named after the wind that is patiently waiting to blow away happiness and safety, just after the protagonist is feeling better and secure.

Mint Biscuit: Sweat Baby Sweat

Guitarist Richard Thomas is a rock mode on Sweat Baby Sweat, the latest release of his one-man project Mint Biscuit. He pushed the sound his Gretsch through a bunch of amp effects and distortion, going for a raw and punchy vibe that will strike a chord with fans of garage rock and grunge.

Whether he goes for aggressive simplicity in Electromatic Breakdown or delivers a power pop excursion with Froggyhopping, Thomas throws in a couple of notes that don't seem to fit, but in fact they actually spice things up. No Guitar Playing In The Library could be mistaken for a Mike Oldfield demo.

Mint Biscuit: Too Much Biscuit

Guitarist Richard Thomas uses a classic trick that was invented by the majors: a "best of" with a previously unreleased track (Three Stars On A Branch) to lure the completists. Too Much Biscuit is not a Christmas as such, but a collection of the mellower instrumentals from the latest three albums (Hot On The Heels Of, Hand Over The Jam! and Turning The Tide) by his one-man project Mint Biscuit.

He obviously spend a lot of time selecting and shuffling tracks around to create a nice flow and as such it his most consistent "best of" so far, making it the one to go before picking up his previous efforts My Favourite Biscuit Blues Men Can't Jump.

Mint Biscuit: Turning The Tide

Turning The Tide is the last album that Welsh guitarist Richard Thomas will release this year, wrapping up an extremely busy year for his one-man project Mint Biscuit. Some of the instrumentals hit hard, with the raucous rocker Force of Rabbit and another take on the distortion fest Mudwanging (previously released on Blues For The Red Cow) as the stand out tracks. Broadcast 26, a last minute addition to the album, is a less-is-more exploration of chord sequences that proves that practicing a lot pays off in spades.

Mint Biscuit: Hand Over The Jam!; Blues Men Can't Jump

If Welsh guitarist Richard Thomas keeps it up with the number of albums and EPs he released so far this year, his one-man project Mint Biscuit will surely earn the right to don the mantle of "most prolific act of 2021". His latest is called Hand Over The Jam!, featuring nine mainly acoustic instrumentals. Ranging from basic rockers (To The Rescue, Here I Am, Six O'Clock Rock) to pastoral outings (Morning Song) he continues to prove that the guitar is a beast that is hard to tame, but that persistence and patience always pay off in spades.

Using self-imposed limitations like he does in All Fingers And Strums can actually be more interesting than trying to be shredding stunt guitarist. And he when doesn't get it right the first time, he starts all over again. One takes wonders are rare. Any musician knows that. The album's closer Somebody Lyrics Confusion is his fifth try as can be heard in his introduction.

Mint Biscuit: Hot On The Heels Of...

Welsh guitarist Richard Thomas released his Quitting The Biscuits EP earlier this year, he stated that it would be last of his stack of tracks, amassed over the years for his one-man Mint Biscuit. Well, he lied. Hot On The Heels Of... is another collection of instrumentals that he found trawling the dusty corners of his hard drive. The tracks were cleaned up with Audacity.

Thomas loves to mess around with harmonics on this one (Happy Tune, Total Harmonium). He tries his hand to come up with a power pop composition, with the oddly named but highly effective McDonalds And Red Wine. Eagle-eyed readers will have noticed that E By Gum was already released on the We Are Sailing EP, but this version is shorter and sounds a bit clearer.

Mint Biscuit: Blues For The Red Cow

Welsh guitarist Richard Thomas gets low down and dirty on Blues For The Red Cow, the latest collection by his one-man project Mint Biscuit. The title of the EP is a dead giveaway: basic blues excursions with a sixties vibe celebrating the joy of playing and putting a pair of fuzz pedals (Dunlop Fuzz Face and Stone Deaf Fig Fumb) to good use, with the harsh Mudwanging as the litmus test for the uninitiated. Also: there is a hint of the Hendrix's version of All Along the Watchtower in Summer Song.

He gets the listener on the wrong foot (but in a good way) by going mellow in the Kicking The Bastard, channeling the sound of Ry Cooder. Bowing out with the joyous Canterbury scene influenced Cellar Steps Thomas wraps up his fifth release of originals this year. That's quite a lot, but he shows no signs of slowing down.

Mint Biscuit: We Are Sailing; My Favourite Biscuit. Mint: After Eight Mint; Best Of - Live Recordings

Welsh guitarist Richard Thomas embraces to old adage of "go big or go home", releasing a brand new solo EP, We Are Sailing, a Best of... for those who could not keep up with his output, plus a bunch remastered live stuff of with his Uni band Mint and a completists only collection of odds and ends they recorded recently.

The new EP is more mellow than his previous recordings. Thomas is counting his blessings, being in a steady relationship, and going out exploring the hills. His tone is gentle and warm, especially during Late Night, Me And Her and Last Night, She And Him, both augmented with slightly psychedelic vibe. Right now it seems he only has to press "rec" and come up with an instrumental that is going places. All Barr Epstein moves slowly as a nod to the virus that causes mono.

Mint Biscuit: You Want Jam On It?

Welsh guitarist Richard Thomas has reached the bottom of his stack of unreleased tracks, but that is not a problem because he has written plenty of new ones as well to compile You Want Jam On It?, the third full-length album by his one-man project Mint Biscuit. He goes back to the basics with three blues-drenched rockers (Roadcruisin', Bluesy and Ribena Breakfast, before making a sharp right into folk (Acidic) and funky psychedelic rock (Apricot Jam).

Thomas likes to go with the flow, surprising himself with motifs and chord progressions that come out of nowhere but always fit the mood. It requires a lot of courage to go out with just a bunch of guitars - lucky for him he owns a quite a few. He allows himself to go Slowly Drifting or limit himself just a few notes for Warm Sounds. He sounds like he is sitting right in front of the listener, a little anxious perhaps, but he shouldn't worry. This collection of instrumentals doesn't need words, although his dad speaks up right at the end of Jamming In The Key Of Raspberry, saying: "yes, that was good, you just need some catchy lyrics now".