McAlmont & Butler - The Sound of McAlmont & Butler (2026 Reissue) McAlmont & Butler

It has been just over thirty years since former Suede guitarist Bernard Butler and ex-Thieves frontman David McAlmont released the extraordinary single Yes into a summer dominated by Britpop and Ibiza rave culture. With its instant-classic feel, sweeping 1960s-inspired string arrangements and grand emotional scale, the track sounded unlike anything else at the time. Today, it is rightly regarded as a stone-cold classic.

Released later that same year, The Sound Of proved to be an immensely satisfying and beguiling album, blending classic songwriting, immaculate production and a seamless fusion of rock and soul. Critics immediately recognised its stature, with The Guardian awarding the record a full five stars, while The Times praised “the monumental climax to the seven-minute-long You Do” as “a fitting end both to the album and to a relationship that shook so hard that perhaps it had to shatter.”

For this timely 2CD reissue, the original album has been newly mastered for enhanced audio quality. Alongside the original record on disc one, a second disc collects demos and alternate mixes. The mastering process, taken directly from the original studio tapes, was overseen by Bernard Butler himself and carried out by his longtime studio collaborator George Shilling.

The limited-edition 2LP version similarly presents the album newly mastered across two vinyl discs for improved fidelity, again sourced from the original tapes and overseen by Butler and Shilling.