Number and 'Alsatian' and ferocious closer ‘Criiella' prove there's ample Substance behind WRM's Siispicion-raismg style. (Camilla Pia)
lNDll
MYSTERY JETS Making Dens
(679) m0
With the Singer's grey- haired father on guitar and a percussion set-up consisting of a scrap heap refuse. it would be all too easy to sink the novelty act knife into the Mystery Jets and tWist it. Yet With their debut the Eel Pie Islanders have succeeded in marking themselves out as a band With more substance than most. From ‘Alas Agnes'. a sea shanty chronicling a doomed transvestite romance. to the halcyon days lament of ‘Soluble in Air', Making Dens proudly wears its idiOSyncraSIes on its sleeve without ever lapsing into preten3ion. On this evidence. the Mystery Jets may yet shake the albatross of an NME tour slot from their necks. (Miles Johnson)
FOLKY POP
THE HAZEY JANES
Hotel Radio (Measured Records) .0.
Like the Magic Numbers. the Hazey Janes rely on gentle gLiitars. easy on the ear melodies and three part male-female harmonies. Unlike the London folkies though, this Dundee-based quartet have the ability to inject a bit of backbone into the proceedings when need be.
Tracks like ‘Moanin'
Face' and “Always There'
drift by amiably enough. while ‘Step Into the C0untry' does lust that. But it's on tracks like ‘T0ulouse and ‘Don't Look Away'. when they cut loose and fill out their sound, that things get interesting and, more importantly, the group comes into its own. (Andrew Borthwrckl
ROCK
GARY HUMAN Jagged
(Mortal RecOrds) me
Gary Numan may be synonymous wrth the now deCIdedly retro sounding andrOid-esgue synthesizer freak that spawned the pompous ‘Cars'. but this influential electronic innovator has supercharged himself for the 21 st century.
Hawng paved the way for uber-industnal overlords Nine Inch Nails. Numan has now incorporated more of the
dark, electro-rock elements of his protege into his familiar sound to potent effect. From the atmospheric. cinematic opener ‘Pressure', to the dark, wintry album—titled closer. Jagged is compelling listening. The panoramic ‘ln a Dark Place' and slow-burning 'Blind' are all anthemic choruses and seas of billowing synths, while the highly-charged ‘Haunted' is infused with fierce riffage and manages to be melancholic but strangely uplifting. Jagged is a revelation. but also reincarnation. (Duncan Bryceland)
JAZZ
RICH IN KNUCKLES
Listen Big
(lsis Records) «0
The free improvisation community clustered around the Glasgow lmprovisers Orchestra is nothing if not prolific in recording terms. Rich in Knuckles is a saxophone
ALSO RELEASED
Roots Manuva Alternate/y Deep (Big Dada) The man Rodney‘s last album gets reworked. remixed and generally done over to sometimes peculiar, mostly compelling reSUIts.
Hundred Reasons Kill Your Own (V2) Much underrated emo rock outfit release a third album of inventive bombast and brutality. Lowlife Eternity Road (Reflections of Lowlife 85—95) (L TM) Culty dream pop outfit from Grangemouth have their back catalogue rightfully remastered and reissued.
Howe Gelb Sno Angel Like You (Thrill Jockey) The Giant Sand mastermind goes gospel for his latest aural adventure from Tuscon. Arizona. Icebreaker Terminal Velocity (Cantaloupe Music) Cello. accordion. guitars. saxes and much more go to make a truly polyrhythmic mess from this 13— strong ensemble.
quartet that grew out of (SIDS extended collaborations With musicians from Munich, and features Raymond MacDonald. Graeme Wilson, John Burgess and Christoph Reiserer. The players create an intricate musrcal and sonic interplay. and if you can handle the level of abstraction and relentless focus on saxophones. there is plenty to keep yOu occupied.
Trying to work out who does what on what instrument could probably keep y0u gomg ad infin/tum in itself. (Kenny Mathieson)
Mr Beast
Ltd CID/DOD. CD. ZLP Out Now
‘Theres no disputing the strength of their
fifth album’ 45mm
‘9 lesson in taking the rough with the smooth from the best teachers around’ «new
‘The perfect balance between sonic aggro and plangent subtletg’ 93mm
‘Epic’ in am ‘Beautiful’ 450 ‘R monster of a record’ an
‘Rrguablg their best and most consistent album yet. It’s time to discover Mogwai - or fall back in love all over again’ m m
LIDE
APRIL 27 - EDINBURBB, USHER BALL tTRiPTucai (0870 903 3444 oomncnemcocoum
[PIAS]
ROCK ACTION
www.mogwaicouk
16—30 Mar 2006 THE LIST 69