There’s no such thing as bad publicity, goes the old saying, and Natasha Noramly and Paul Mellon would certainly agree.
Recently, Star Trek and Shaun of the Dead actor Simon Pegg posted a picture of himself wearing a T-shirt emblazoned with the logo of recently-reformed band F.O. Machete.
However, famous fans, it seems, were harder to come by when the band first formed back in 2003. A tabloid story reported how ‘Lady In Red’ crooner Chris de Burgh took great offence when he encountered their first album in a Scottish record shop.
(This also explains what the ‘F’ in the band’s name originally stood for).
That debut long player, My First Machete, saw the band play headline tours around Europe as well as sharing bills with like-minded acts like Dinosaur Jr. and TV On The Radio.
A hiatus followed in 2011 with Noramly moving to Los Angeles and it seemed that was indeed that, until last year when the singer returned to Scotland, and the pair teamed up again.
The result: Mother of a Thousand, recorded with former Delgado Paul Savage and Belle and Sebastian producer Brian McNeill, and which sees the band retain the exuberance and edge of their previous recordings and thrilling live shows, along with big hooks and catchy choruses.
The band admit their new sound is less “power trio” now, with the core duo joined by guitarist Berny McGurk and Aidan McAllister on drums.
“It’s less lo-fi and angular than our stuff used to be,” Mellon told isthismusic.com. “I’m reluctant to use the word ‘mature’ but I think it is more mature and the songwriting is just much better.”
“We wanted to make something that feels real and alive,” Noramly adds. “The songs are about finding your way through the chaos and celebrating what matters while you can.”
The album appears via Last Night From Glasgow – Mellon having been offered a deal “on the spot” when the label found that they had reformed.
“I need to go out more often if things like this are going to happen!” Mellon laughs.
With the album already riding high in the Scottish charts, the band seem likely to gain new fans alongside the likes of The Undertones ‘Mickey Bradley who listed single Confetti Crown as one of his ‘Best of 2024’ in his BBC Radio Ulster radio show.
Which bodes well for the band – as Noramly says: “I’m also super excited for the next record already… I think we’ve only just got started.”
‘Mother Of A Thousand’ is out now via Last Night From Glasgow. This article originally appeared in the Sheffield Star.
Also chief newshound at Jockrock
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