One Inch Punch perhaps, but this song's enough to knock you out cold. A swirling
guitar-based earthquake of a backing track sends tremors around a loping rhythm section as
detached male vocals wonder on the outcome of having a fast car. Half way through, they
turn into a trashed-up hip-hop rap, then the guitars take over again. As expected from an ex-Bomb
The Bass collaborator's outfit, this consists of a melange of styles; all mixed together into an
effective dance-based whole.
The b-sides are all remixes, including a Tim Simenon take on the song (giving it a much more ambient
slant) and an acoustic version, which is probably the only time I've heard a rap over an acoustic guitar.
Rating: 10/10
The Rest
A golden ambient electronic backing props up a wonderful female vocal that sounds like Sinead O'Connor crossed
with Bjork. At heart a simple love song, the layers of Eastern rhythms and warm pulsing tones eventually give way to
a dancier beat, never losing its mysterious and other-worldly origins. One to play inside floatation tanks, "Gorecki" is a
cheap return ticket to the surface of the moon.
An instumental version of "Gorecki" is followed by "Ear Parcel", an unsettlingly weird ambient sound journey
similar to those that The Orb used to take us upon, except Lamb travel at supersonic speeds for most of the time.
"Lullaby" closes the CD and features more of those distinctive vocals over some scary string and (double) bass discord: this
lullaby will give you nightmares. An excellent release.
Rating: 9/10
Starting like Nico singing hymns accompanied by a tiny harp (honest), this is Gorky's at their
psychedelic folk-tinged best. Completely oblivious to current trends and musical genres, this
band of Welsh nutters pray to their own very strange muse and produce some infectious and
hilarious output in the process. Less histrionic than previous releases, this sees the band in
mellower mode, but still several hundred miles away from anything normal. Priceless.
"The Queen Of Georgia" also sounds uncannily like the Velvets, with its slow pounding
rhythm and soft vocals. "Tears In Disguise" rounds off this mellow springtime release, with some
country-tinged guitar and vocals.
Rating: 8/10
Back now in more familiar indie-guitar territory, "Local Boy In The Photograph" is elevated above the
norm by some wonderfully tremulous vocals a la Thom Yorke and a tune worthy of the divine Radiohead.
If anything, this is a little too derivative of that band, but is worthy enough in its own right to warrant a
high mark. In an age full of retro and tired guitar tediousness, bands like Stereophonics at least approach the genre
with their heads in the clouds and their hearts in their mouths. Not quite epic, but widescreen at the very
least.
B-sides do little to dispel the comparisons, but are both fine songs. "Too Many Sandwiches" is a little
raunchier and more bluesy than "Local Boy.." and "Buy Myself A Small Plane" is more punk/new wave, featuring
splendid lyrics such as "I was Butch Cassidy's tutor, although Sundance was cuter".
Rating: 8/10
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