North Atlantic Oscillation
Some Blue Hive EP (One)
Did we already review this? Sounds very familiar. But no matter, just another chance to alert you to the acid-addled, sliver-caped prog genius that is NAO. The title track on this 4-tracker is, of course, the main attraction, it’s what Peter Gabriel would have been doing if born 30 years later - an astonishing amalgam of Flaming Lips and Grandaddy indie-pop sensibilities with a bewildering vista of sound sweeping ahead of the listener - where the noncholantly muttered lyrics hide a multitude of great ideas. 3 more tracks here which in their own way, time-travel to soundtrack the Tardis falling into eternity - if ELO (not ELP) ditched orchestras and got the more cost-effective sequencer option, and listened to Tortoise rather than Beethoven, they’d have made this. And, if an army of prog warriors robot elves from the future ever does take over the world then NAO will be there, as the voice of reason showing that we can all live together in harmony. And writing the soundtrack to the action documentary.
Stuart McHugh
