Unkle Bob

Less a band, more singer-songwriter Rick Webster, Unkle Bob have (has?) been making dreamy slightly lovelorn pop for the past decade, to critical acclaim and some small measure of commercial success.
Following a brief spell working with the Gang of Four’s Andy Gill (plus Eddi Reader) under the Tom Fool moniker, Webster has gone ‘solo’ again and while he’s not quite returned to the semi-acoustic sound that characterised the ‘band’ previously, this is a shift towards more chart-friendly music. Not that this is a problem of course – it’s easy to throw in references like Coldplay, but these multi-layered, slicky-produced tunes has more nods to the likes of REM and Morrissey. When ‘Brother’ builds to a crescendo and muttered vocals flit in and out of the mix it’s a glorious moment.
‘Home’, the other standout on this EP, similarly builds to an epic conclusion, and while 10 years is a long time to be beavering away on the margins of the mainstream, you only need to look at the likes of Elbow to realise that for the truly talented, recognition and wider acclaim can eventually arrive.