Chapterhouse - White House Demos

The long-lost origins of legendary shoegaze pioneers Chapterhouse finally resurface with White House Demos, a revelatory EP capturing the band’s first-ever studio recordings. Laid down at The White House studio in Weston-super-Mare on January 15, 1989, when the group had played only four shows, these four tracks document the birth of a sound that would soon help define a generation.

Forgotten for decades and rediscovered through the intervention of Slowdive guitarist Christian Savill, White House Demos offers a raw, crystalline glimpse into Chapterhouse’s earliest vision — a swirl of jangling guitars, dreamlike melodies, and hypnotic rhythm already hinting at the expansive textures of Whirlpool. Savill, who worked alongside band member Russell Barrett during those formative years, has called the demos “their best record,” and hearing them now, it’s easy to understand why.

Among the four tracks, “Ecstasy” finally appears in its complete eight-minute form, shimmering and propulsive, while early versions of “Guilt” and “Die Die Die” reveal the embryonic energy of songs that would later become Chapterhouse staples. The closing track, “See That Girl,” is the true hidden gem — a previously unreleased cut that captures the wistful, cinematic scope of late ’80s British indie before it coalesced into shoegaze proper.

More than a historical artifact, White House Demos is a time capsule of youthful experimentation and future promise, a vivid snapshot of a band on the cusp of greatness. With its new 2025 vinyl pressing, these recordings finally take their rightful place in the Chapterhouse story — not as outtakes, but as the purest distillation of where it all began.