Well …………………….where should we start? Tell you what – in case you are one of those people who just quickly scan over these reviews and can’t be bothered with all the contentious comment, just read this bit and move on:
BUY THIS ALBUM!
So you want to know why? IT’S JUST BRILLIANT!
OK, it’s all been done before in its singularly constituent parts but not for many years and certainly not with such seamless integration of so many inspirational influences. Fusing the likes of The Stones, The Beatles and The Doors, with the more ‘cult’ types such as The Electric Prunes and The Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band is quite something and regardless of age, anyone listening to this album must appreciate the crystal- clear, yet dirty guitar riffs and overall clean, transparent sound.
The album opens with ‘Turn It Down’ – a psychedelic whirling blast of growling background guitar overlaid with sporadic jangly guitar and loud harmonies. Certainly inspired by the bands of The Sixties, both this track and that which follows, ‘After All’ cannot be directly compared to any specific groups from that era. However, the latter sees the harmonica being employed for the first time on the album, and ‘Love Me Do’ does spring to mind in parts.
One of the really interesting things about this album is its ability to make the listener change their mind on a daily basis as to what is their favourite track! At the time of writing this piece, it is ‘Heart Shaped Line’ for me. A real stomping and threatening beat – almost akin to The Meteors in its bass-line – combines with Jim Morrison styled vocals and bluesy slide- guitar work to produce a real ‘ingrain in the brain,’ track.
‘As High As I Can’ is a definite Beatles throwback what with the guitar and harmonies. Next up is ‘On The Way’ which a light, jazzy number featuring either a theremin or one of Scooby Do’s ghostly adversaries! This is where the earlier reference to The Bonzos comes in.
Yesterday, ‘Don’t Talk To Me,’ was my favourite track, and no doubt it will return to that position in a few days. As a huge Rolling Stones fan, it is great to hear that early clean-cut R&B guitar played so proficiently today. Back that up with Sandy Nelson styled drumming and in a world no so readily accepting of ‘disposable fad’ music, you’d have a huge seller.
‘Summer’s Arrived,’ reflects the softer side of The Sixties. A bit of a ‘dreamer,’ this one, with the old Hammond organ (it sounds like) playing a key part – no pun intended! Though it has the trademark jangly guitar and an intricate mid-song guitar solo, ‘I Have To Go,’ seems almost to encourage a ‘lead bass’ role for the first time, while the penultimate track ‘Throwing Stones’ has that mind-bending, flower-powered Indian peace-commune feel to it. The chorus has that sort of ‘backward melody’ to it that will have you singing to yourself all day long – whether you like it or not! The final track, ‘Flowers On The Bridge’ is the only one that could be deemed a ballad. Perhaps a bit of an odd closer considering what precedes, but maybe the thinking was to adopt the aforementioned theory of ‘disposable music’ in the assumption that those who crave more of the superb eclectic and heady mixture of guitar and harmony that went before, will lift the needle and re-cue on track one!
//Colin Jackson