Sizer Barker began as the solo project of Carl Brown, who had previously played with The Lightning Seeds and Space, in 2000. The bands name is derived from a gravestone inscription reading “William Sizer Barker”, seen by Brown in a Liverpool cemetery. The band released singles “Day by Day” and “Something in the Park” through hug records in 2000-2001, before being signed to Peter Gabriel’s record label “Pre”. They were the first new signing to the label and also supported Peter Gabriel on his European tour in 2004. The band released their first studio album in 2004 titled “Hotel Juicy Parlour”.

Dave Simpson of The Guardian described Sizer Barker’s sound as “a wonderful, idiosyncratic thing”, and likened the band to Beck, Shack and Pere Ubu. Ben Hogwood of MusicOMH described their music as “life-affirming” and their debut album as “a record that could only have been made in Liverpool.” Andy Gill of The Independent described the album as “a sparkling, diverse collection, full of Beatlesque melodies and quirky, exotic arrangements.” Stewart Lee of The Times wrote of the album: “it’s easy on the ear, but contains enough subliminal segments of squally guitar noise to appease those suspicious of nakedly commercial craftsmanship”.

Distribution Services: hug records