Truly, this is what is meant by lo-fi. Some of you may be confused by this as you'll be aware that Arab Strap's most public moment to date is 'The First Big Weekend', a spoken word tale over cheap sequencer and acoustic guitar which came from nowhere to sit at #2 in the Festive 50 and become the definitive single release of 1996. It's funny and flippant, and because of the Scottish accent a lot of people described it as Trainspotting set to music. It isn't of course, but it's still great in its own right. However, the rest of their work bears little relation to it so it's a puzzle why our local Our Price have this filed in the dance section! The overall feel is of a bedroom recorded Slint album, with the mood lightened by a few whimsical pieces. Closest to 'Weekend' is the autobiogaphical 'I Work In A Saloon' - again spoken word, pretty acoustic guitar melody and drum machine. Best of the moody stuff is mysterious new single 'The Clearing', the melodic bass playing of 'Gourmet' and the superbly understated 'Kate Moss' complete with subtle drumming. Not the best record you'll ever hear, but it's full of imagination and is a strong debut. (review by Jonathan) Back to top
Definitely a grower. It takes a bit of getting used to Eric Bachman's bassy growl (a bit like Tom Waits fronting Superchunk) but ultimately you're left concluding that this is AOL's best effort to date. A couple of tracks - 'Assassination On Xmas Eve' and 'Vocal Shrapnel' recall the genius slacker-pop of '93's 'Web In Front', but overall the album is more consistent and thoughtful than their earlier releases. It begins all raucous and slanted lo-fi with the opening salvo of 'Strangled By The Stereo Wire' and the title track and then gets into a more melodic stride with 'Scenic Pastures' and 'Worst Defence'. It's not a case of Pavement/ Sebadoh wannabes though, as variety is introduced with the instrumental 'Bumpo' (recalling Bachman's 'Barry Black' solo album) and the fab piano, vocal and backwards guitar arrangement of 'Chumming the Ocean', which could almost have fallen off Neil Young's 'Harvest'. It's all good stuff, and I also detect a Brit post-punk influence (Wire, Gang of 4, XTC). Don't let the silly name put you off, this is a quality album.
ARCHERS OF LOAF Vitus Tinnitus (alias 10")
Hot on the heels of the fab 'All The Nation's Airports' comes this mostly live mini-album. Fans will know most of the tunes and it's good to hear old faves like 'Greatest of all Time' and 'Audio Whore' again. The other highlights come from the recent album with a live version of the melodic 'Form and File' and John Agnello remixes of two of its best tunes 'Vocal Shrapnel' and 'Scenic Pastures'. (reviews by Jonathan) Back to top
Now this is a surprise. If someone had told me that an album from an unknown Glasgow seven-piece clearly influenced by Donovan and Nick Drake would be battling it out with Guided By Voices, Underworld, Tortoise and The Fall, as my fave album of '96. Maybe it's not surprising when I think about how much I love great songwriting and how little of it there is around.
Back to the album in question however. Belle and Sebastian were assembled by songwriter Stuart Murdoch little over a year ago in Glasgow. They brought out a mail order album last July ('Tigermilk') and this is the full-length follow up. Great songs and a mix of traditional instruments (violin, harmonica, cello) are the main ingredients. If you don't fall in love with opening song 'The Stars of Track and Field' then you just won't get it. Lines like "You liberated a boy I never rated/ Now he's throwing discuss for Liverpool and Widnes" don't grow on trees you know! Nine other gems make up the rest of the album, from the uptempo 'Me And The Major' and the title track, to the lighthearted 'Seeing Other People' and the moody 'Judy and the Dream of Horses', there isn't a bad track here. Sure it may at times sound as if it was made in 1970 but good songwriting has a timeless quality. The most exciting thing I've heard using traditional/ conventional structures since Lambchop, don't ignore this. (review by Jonathan)
Back to top
At 16 tracks and nearly an hour in length, Bis's prolific streak shows no signs of letting up. I know it's a cliche but the material on offer really does show more maturity - both in the writing and playing - and it also helps that this is well recorded. Bonus points too for structuring the running order so Manda's vocals don't all grate together - that would be too much to take. None of the previous singles make the line-up this time,although new one 'Sweet Shop Avengerz' is included and sounds a lot better in the context of the album. 'Tell It To The Kids' is a great opener, and it sets the agenda for the rest of the album - loads of brash, poppy energy from start to finish. 'Antiseptic Poetry' and 'X-Defect' bristle with pop/punk hooks, 'Lie Detector Test' and 'Rebel Soul' show a subtler thoughtful side which they'll hopefully explore in the future. Certainly preferable to the likes of 'Popstar Kill' and 'Poster Parent' which are very annoying indeed. Overall a more promising debut than many would have expected. (review by Jonathan) Back to top
I like this lots. A selection of reverbed guitar and strange ambience from this duo, landing in an uneasy middle ground somewhere between Flying Saucer Attack and Mazzy Star. Recorded on 8-track, the songs are all very simply put together with a distorted pop tune underneath, but the mood it creates is quite superb. The rippling guitar textures climax in dischord on 'Season of Blame', while 'I Existed' rejoices in a feisty lyric - you can actually hear what Martine is singing, unlike a lot of their experimental contemporaries. 'Stars Of The Night' with its subtle melody, and 'Rachael' are virtually ambient pieces, while the fractured blues of 'Baby I'm Lost Without You' shows yet another side to them. A debut every bit as enigmatic as its cover photography, you could be well advised to check this out. (review by Jonathan) Back to top
It is tremendous when everything falls into place and you know that you've done something really great. That's how BTS must feel at the moment, because this is an exceptional album and what's more, it's a completely different proposition to '95's sweetly melodic 'There's Nothing Wrong With Love'.
'Perfect From Now On' (you can tell by the title that they know they've got it right) is a highly ambitious record. The band have lept from three minute Sebadoh flavoured pop to intricately arranged epics using moogs, mellotrons, strings. For BTS this is an equivalent transition to the Beatles between 'Beatles For Sale' and 'Rubber Soul'/ 'Revolver'. You get the idea. You know things are different when you study the back cover - eight songs averaging seven minutes each isn't the BTS we're used to. This fact is clearly underlined by the opening blast of 'Randy Described Eternity'. Sure Doug's distinctively nasal vocals are there but this time the melody is complemented by a luscious multi-layered arrangement. Best of all are 'I Would Hurt A Fly' and 'Untrustable', both showing musical maturity and lyrical bile previously unimagined. Although the music has changed a lot it's hard to imagine old fans being disappointed cos the quality of the material is so good. 'Kicked it in the Sun' provides a link to earlier stuff with a sweet melody and naive lyric ('we're special.. in ways our mothers appreciate') reminding you of the joys of 'Car' and its ilk. This album doesn't put a foot wrong, the first real musical highlight of 1997. Essential. (review by Jonathan) Back to top
Guitar Wolf albums are a bit like a king-sized pizza with extra topping - they seem like a good idea but you have trouble getting through them in one go. You may have heard snatches of previous album 'Kung Fu Ramone' ( a very spot on way to describe their music) on Peel, but 'Missile Me' is their first freely available worldwide release. In case you don't know Guitar Wolf are a Japanese trio and to describe their sound as flat out punk rock n roll is a big understatement. These guys are a hybrid of Ramones/ New York Dolls and a million US 60s garage bands (the Sonics etc) cranked up full and recorded to what sounds like 2track with all the LEDs stuck on red. It's full of garage band cliches and the titles show their fascination with American r n r language - 'Guitar Star', 'Racing Rock', 'Jet Rock N Roll' Oh yeah, and they allegedly drink a bottle of tequila each at every show! However, given its origins and extremities it has real appeal. You just have to look at three Japanese boys slicking back their hair, donning shades and pouting for the camera to be intrigued. At 28 minutes its probably about 25 minutes too long, one sitting of the superbly exciting 'Link Wray Man' is very hard to follow, but for lovers of the extreme this is worth your attention. (review by Jonathan) Back to top
In case you don't already know, the Make-Up are 75% Nation of Ulysses and 25% Frumpies, and as this genuinely live album shows, they like to live for the moment. Their whole world seems to revolve around the live performance - they organise all their own shows, involve the audience a lot ('Can I Hear You Say Yea?') and even write most of the songs about the subtleties and politics of putting on and playing gigs. Lyrics that talk about queuing to get in, and a fab monologue about 'the worth of the moment' - you get the picture. The music is superb, really on edge and exciting, a mixture of Pussy Galore punk rock and James Brown Live At the Apollo. In fact the cliches of bloated rock performance and gospel are all here - there's lots of 'baby's and 'mama's, and the bit where he asks the audience to 'synchronise your sweet watch with me' is priceless. I'm left with the impression of a lo-fi Prince and the Revolution crossed with a funky version of Can. It's a strange mix but it really works. A new studio album 'Sound Verite' is due imminently but they'll be hard pushed to match 'After Dark's live energy. (review by Jonathan) Back to top
As everyone knows, no two Pavement albums sound the same. This fourth album sees the more off-the-wall tendencies of 'Wowee Zowee' taking a back seat in favour of more traditional structures. If we're talking influences, think of 80s guitar bands like the Rain Parade, Dream Syndicate and the Feelies, add a dash of mid-70s Rolling Stones and you'll get a rough idea. Opening track and first single 'Stereo' is a splendid piece of rock n roll whimsy, and the majority of the material stays close to its conventional 3 minute structure. It's probably better to listen to the album as a whole as it all flows, but I might as well pick out a few faves. 'Passat Dream' inhabits the same funky territory as recent Beck and Afghan Whigs, 'Shady Lane' and 'Old To Begin' are gentle pieces given Malkmus's seal of strangeness, and 'Date With Ikea' weaves a lyrical puzzle out of a mesmerising Byrdsian riff. This could convert more people than the last sprawling but brilliant album - whatever, old fans will be more than happy. (Review by Jonathan) Back to top
A major improvement on last year's very average debut, 'Surrender..' sees Trans Am equally at home with computer based systems or trad three piece rock workouts. In fact this flicks between old fashioned rock boogie, electronica, drum n bass and Krautrock, all of which they do well. Opening track 'Motr' gives a big clue to the overall direction as it sees the three piece band playing a melody not dissimilar to Kraftwerk's 'Neon Lights'. They seem to share the latter's desire to experiment but never lose sight of the melody. The appropriately titled 'Cologne' sees the first appearance of Kraut influenced electronica, with the drummer swapping his kit for a programmed sequence. It all works, and really takes your head off when the hard rock riff of 'Rough Justice' explodes into the distorted electronica of 'Zero Tolerance'. Literally amazing, as I was open mouthed the first time I heard it. Best of the trad band stuff is the rocking 'Carboforce', while 'Tough Love' is maximum drum n bass and 'Night Dreaming'/ 'Night Dancing' sees it all gel together. Maybe a bit too clever for some people's liking - and it is a bit art for art's sake, they have no undercurrent of revolution or anything - I really enjoyed their attempts at creating a literal kind of 'jungle/boogie' (oh lord I haven't just invented another subgenre have I?!) (review by Jonathan) Back to top
The palindromic name, the repetitive sleeve design and the fact that they play adventurous Euro-electronica suggests that we have Panasonic II in the house. It's a fair enough comparison, but To Rococo Rot aren't quite as minimal and their music has enough warmth and melody to make them stand out from their Finnish counterparts. TRR are in fact German - Berlin artists Robert and Ronald Lippock asked Dusseldorf musician Stephan Schneider to help them create some music for an installation and TRR was formed. 'Veiculo' is their debut album and it's an odd affair. Odd because minimal electronica like this is traditionally without soul, and although these repetitive locked grooves have the hallmarks of Kraftwerk circa 'Radioactivity' there's a certain soulfulness or human feel creeping through. In fact where contemporary techno-minimalists have the ability to annoy occasionally, 'Veiculo' completely fails in this department, so it's quite a pleasure to listen to it all the way through. If you've been waiting for a worthy successor to Aphex Twin's 'Selected Ambient Works' I suggest you give this a listen, pronto. (review by Jonathan) Back to top