Music RECORDS
POP/ ROCK THE PINEAPPLE CHUNKS A Dog Walked In (self-released) ●●●●●
Smoother than they once were, Edinburgh’s premier lo-fi power- popsters nervertheless come on like some unreconstructed missing link between Swell Maps and Pavement, their urgently scuzzed- up melodies bouncing along with an unashamed fondness for squiggly-wiggly guitar lines pumped along by a drummer who thwacks his kit around the room like a post- modern Keith Moon who can’t find the swimming pool.
With such a pot pourri of conflicting sounds slugging it out over a selection of everyday art school laments, this gloriously messy melange of oddball nonsense is the aural equivalent of falling down a spiral staircase, grinning as you go. (Neil Cooper)
GROUP COLLABORATION THE FRUIT TREE FOUNDATION First Edition (Chemikal Underground) ●●●●●
If you’re looking for proof that Scotland’s musical voices are far-reaching and brilliant, we cordially direct you to First Edition. It’s a stellar, cohesive collaboration from Frabbit’s Scott Hutchison, The Twilight Sad’s James Graham, Sparrow and the Workshop’s Jill O’Sullivan, Alasdair Roberts and more. Led by Emma Pollock and Rod Jones, the FTF evolved from the Scottish Mental Health Arts Festival, and First Edition was written by the group last year. While the album’s social cause is
vital – the songs focus loosely on mental health and wellbeing – what really strikes is its uniform excellence. ‘You’ve really got a hold of me’, sing O’Sullivan and Yorkston. And you think: yes. (Nicola Meighan)
ELECTRONIC SOUL BLOOD ORANGE Coastal Grooves (Domino) ●●●●● Having left his guises as Test-Icicles and Lightspeed Champion behind, serial reinventor Devonte Hynes returns with a new alias and what he accurately calls his ‘disco Chris Isaak oriental thing.’ Although not perfect from start to finish, Blood Orange is certainly the most satisfying of his three personae to date. The beautiful ‘Sutphin Boulevard’ is a slow, insistent groove that’s part Royksopp and part Massive Attack; ‘Can We Go Inside Now’ is a Lynchian spaghetti western soundtrack over which Hynes insists ‘I was a lonely girl / who grew up fast’; ‘S’Cooled’ blends lo-fi post-punk with hip hop grooves and the detached android croon of early-80s Bowie. It’s a grower, we suspect, whose poise and individual style will prove timeless. (David Pollock)
HIPPY FOLK-ROCK JONATHAN WILSON Gentle Spirit (Bella Union) ●●●●●
It is tempting to go through Wilson’s solo debut and point out influences. He has a rich folk lineage, including production work with J Tillman of Fleet Foxes and Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy and long-term residence in Laurel Canyon, so it is no surprise that this record is rustic, both in sound and imagery.
Presumably raised on a healthy diet of Neil Young, his warm, melodic sound relies on largely organic instrumentation and honey- laced vocals. Elliott Smith vibes slip in on ‘Can We Really Party Today?’, complimented by slatherings of strings, with jazzier, 70s sounds on ‘Desert Raven’ and ‘Natural Rhapsody’. A carefully crafted album likely to find favour with fans of Wilco or Crosby, Stills and Nash. (Lauren Mayberry)
116 THE LIST 4–11 Aug 2011
PSYCH ROCK MOONFACE Organ Music Not Vibraphone Like I’d Hoped (Jagjaguwar) ●●●●● Better to be busy than bored right? It seems the mantra of Spencer Krug, core member of Canadian collectives Wolf Parade, Sunset Rubdown, Swan Lake and Frog Eyes. Here, with Wolf Parade on hiatus, Krug focuses on his own endeavours, and the return of his Moonface side-project. As now expected from Krug, his latest effort is permeated with a psychedelic haze; its five songs create 37 minutes of hypnotic, low-rent drum grooves, pulsating organ swirls and stargazing croons. The sheer length of the songs feels necessary rather than self-indulgent too; once you’re locked in the grip of tracks like ‘Fast Peter’ and ‘Loose Heart=Loose Plan’ it’s hard to want to leave. (Ryan Drever)
JAZZ BILLY JENKINS Jazz Gives Me The Blues (VOTP Records) ●●●●●
I suspect you either get Billy Jenkins or you don’t, with no half measures. The cult jazz guitarist and blues singer’s latest assault on our preconceptions about jazz, blues, guitar playing and life in general (Jenkins is also a Humanist celebrant, jazz trivia fans may be interested to note) will please those in the first category, but probably won’t convert the doubters. This time the South Londoner
tackles a set of familiar staples (with a few characteristic interjections) rather than his own material, including a couple of Ellington selections and ‘God Bless The Child’. His scrabbly virtuosity is underpinned by Jim Watson’s organ, and Finn Peters adds fine alto sax and flute. (Kenny Mathieson)
SINGLES & DOWNLOADS
We are to be assured that Charlie Simpson is well and truly out of short trousers on ‘Parachutes’ (CSM Records ●●●●●). Lyrically, things have matured past his chart-friendly pop-punkster days and his light rock targets admirers of piano- grubbers Keane or Coldplay. Howler sound very ‘of the minute’. ‘This One’s Different’ (Rough Trade ●●●●●) is basic, riff-heavy pop that doesn’t necessarily inspire on record but has enough jangly guitars and Strokes-style cool to find fans live, not least whilst supporting The Vaccines on tour later this year. Edinburgh’s Letters have
been busy, releasing early- Idlewild-esque single ‘Flash! Lights!’ (White label ●●●●●) only months after beginning gigging. Meanwhile, The Last Battle show that yes, we are still doing nu-folk on ‘The Springwell EP’ (White label ●●●●●), which should please fans of Fencers Kid Canaveral or Fence papa (and Mercury nominee) King Creosote. ‘Got It All (This Can’t Be Living Now)’ (Atlantic ●●●●●), the first single off Portugal. The Man’s new LP, In The Mountain In The Cloud, comes with a bitchin’ speaker-panning guitar solo and proof that Alaska-then- Portland-based John Gourley can really nail a falsetto line. Elsewhere, Death Cab For Cutie cultivate an ever-more commercial fanbase with ‘Codes and Keys’ (Atlantic ●●●●● ).
But Joan As Police Woman (Play It Again Sam ●●●●●) outwrites and outsings them all, making this our Single of the Week. ‘Chemmie’, from latest LP The Deep Field, outlines a more uplifting style for Joan Wasser, with sultry Philadelphia soul leanings and vocals that purr from the speakers. (Lauren Mayberry) ■ See page 119 to win Joan as Police Woman singles and LPs.