Folks - I See Cathedrals

Album review by KevW

On their debut album it seems Manchester's Folks have set about giving us a tour of various points in rock music's history. 'I See Cathedrals' almost sounds like a compilation with the way they hop from one style or era to another, rarely staying in one place too long. I guess this record could be a handy introduction to fifty years' worth of guitar music for anyone starting out on a musical journey totally from scratch. Your traditional bass/drums/guitar/vocals format has given us a multi-faceted selection of sounds, some good and, naturally, some bad. Because Folks seem intent on replicating so many of their heroes and covering so much ground on this record we get some good and, naturally, some bad too.

It's odd that they choose imitation so often instead of searching for their own identity, but this hasn't prevented dozens of past bands doing exactly the same. The Folks' whistle-stop rock tour stops off at psych/blues ('My Mother'), summery semi-acoustics ('People I've Known'), 'No One Knows' by Queens Of The Stone Age meets ELO's 'Mr Blue Sky' ('Skull & Bones'), intimate, heartfelt balladry ('Ink'), Oasis doing one of their slow, piano type numbers ('Where Does The White Go'), a reflective, lengthier final track ('The Ship') and lots in between, much of which would have made a nice Ocean Colour Scene B-side. There's a sense that they can do better than this yet have chosen to reflect the sounds of their idols instead of creating something unique.

'Do The Right Thing' plunders the intro to 'London Calling' seemingly without a second thought, but instead of punk fury we get earnest chart-rock. They've landed some high profile support slots with the kind of bands you'd expect (Band Of Skulls, Miles Kane, Noel Gallagher) and it's always good to look beyond a single format when it comes to songwriting, and Folks are capable of writing some fairly likable tracks. On the final song they ponder "is this your heaven or is this my hell?". The answer is probably neither, it's a nondescript middle-ground. The trouble is that it's great being a band with many ideas, but not so great when none of them are your own.





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Abbe May - Karmageddon

Single review by KevW

It's fair to say that Abbe May is a bit better known in her homeland of Australia than in the UK. Her album 'Design Desire' received a nomination for the Aussie equivalent of the Mercury Music Prize for example, but this is likely to change if her forthcoming new album 'Kiss My Apocalypse' (due out in April) has a few more tracks of the quality of new single 'Karmadeddon' (we're beginning to spot a theme...) on it. These doom-laden titles indicate a flirtation with the end times, and if those who think the Mayans predicted the end of the world (which they didn't, fact fans) are right then we may never get to hear it.

Thankfully the Mayans just, correctly, predicted the end of a cosmic cycle, so we should be around to hear more of this forbidding, experimental pop. Coming from a similar place musically to someone like The Knife, 'Karmageddon' is ominous in both vocals and sound, a bit like an update of Tricky and Martina Topley-Bird's take on trip-hop. It's a constant pace, a monotonous, ghostly zombie of a tune, but tasteful with it. This isn't goth for teenagers, this is sophisticated and innovative pop that whips up a sky full of black clouds, like an impending storm. Maybe that storm will erupt with the release of the album. We'll have to wait and see, if we're still here...





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The Deadline Shakes - Sweeten The Deal

Single review by KevW

The cover of this debut single by Glasgow band The Deadline Shakes looks like a load of bricks that have just been thrown on a table and some have ended up spelling out their name, and oddly that's a decent metaphor for their sound. 'Sweeten The Deal' is a load of sounds thrown together that have magically resulted in a near perfect guitar-pop song. It's almost certainly a more organised process than that, unless they really are magicians, and you can hear elements of country, psychedelia, rock, indiepop, sun-kissed beauty and Spectorish grandeur, all jostling for space and each finding their place as though it were second nature.

What this amounts to is a totally timeless song that will be loved by people who enjoy 60s sounds right up to those who've been absorbed by modern experimental pop alchemists like Animal Collective. I guess you could say they're a bit like a Scottish version of The See See; this song has some precision melodies and harmonies going on, a glint in its eye and a little fire burning in its belly. It's a hugely endearing fusion of organic sounds including frantic guitar and (possibly) mandolin as well as thundering drum rolls for added drama. It sounds as though it was a heck of a lot of fun to record and likewise it's something of a challenge to listen to without breaking out into a big smile.



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Isle Of Rhodes - All Rivers And Oceans

Album review by KevW

Two or three plays into this album by Brooklyn duo Isle Of Rhodes and preparation was underway for the review of a fairly routine indie-rock band who'd made a decent enough album with the odd highlight. So time to do a bit of research, find some info about them, a bit of biography and all that jazz, and there, on the press release, it states that this album was recorded using nothing but a Rhodes electric piano (hence the band name) and percussion. This came as something of a shock, as listening to 'All Rivers And Oceans' it doesn't even cross your mind that such, what you'd assume to be, limitations had been set. Only listening to it after realising this fact do you spot the absence of guitars and the skill involved in making such a full sound in this way.

This is definitely something that makes Isle Of Rhodes' work all the more impressive, but when it boils down to it, all that counts is what the end product sounds like. So despite a pretty heroic effort in putting these songs together, it still only really dazzles in a few places. 'Islands' is a particularly good example where they deviate from their regular sound and create something a bit more interesting. It's more anthemic and much more engaging than a large part of the album. 'Eyes Like The Sun' is another cracker, again it has grander ambitions that result in something more reflective with a spoken word ending that at first seems out of place, almost hallucinatory, but it actually works wonders once your brain catches on.

Occasionally 'All The Rivers And Oceans' seems to be dragging its feet. Four tracks drift past the five-minute mark when really only the closer needs to. The middle of the album is a touch too samey, and it's notable that the highlights are when they step away from their standard setting. That said, you can't really complain about any particular songs individually, it's as a collection that this album shoots itself in the foot. Impressive as songs like 'Young Love' are, there's a little more gold dust needed to give the record an extra boost, a bit more variety and experimentation maybe. You have to doff your cap for the way this album was made and it should be pointed out that the songs are good. Some people may find the full duration a bit heavy going though.




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The Faults - Patients EP

EP review by KevW

When The Strokes gave rock music a shot in the arm over a decade ago, they did so by stripping things back to pure songs, raw, non-flabby, primal rock 'n' roll songs. It wasn't that people weren't making that sort of music elsewhere, the impact came from their songs being that bit better than others, plus the fact that they not only drew from 60s garage and 70s punk, they implanted their own modern DNA within the songs and this proved a winning formula, one they've failed to quite recapture ever since. Australians The Faults take a very similar approach; you can here The Strokes clearly, but it's the feral proto-punks of the 60s and early 70s that appear to be the strongest influence on this, their second EP.

The howling, fuzzed-up vocals especially recall those made using primitive equipment by DIY heroes from that era, and the serrated guitars repeat the trick. The title-track is a perfect example; it's like the Strokes covering The Buzzcocks covering The Monks. 'Peace Of Mind' delves further back to the first garage and surf pioneers that coexisted alongside the more popular explosion of beat music. Some stuttering drums and the noise of contemporary garage groups is served up on 'Leather Jacket', before we dart back to the atmospheric 60s rattle of 'Summer' and the distorted blast of 'Chivalry' to finish things off. In the space of a single EP, The Faults have given us a crash course in untamed rock music. Nice work.




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San Cisco - Beach

Single review by KevW

From Tennis to Best Coast to The Drums, the indie hoards have become a bit obsessed with sun, sea and surf, whether it's been the lo-fi jangle of these guys or the hazy summery sounds of chillwave, there's been some attraction to the escapism offered by the seaside. If you prefer your music just that bit higher definition than the DIY sounding efforts of the aforementioned, then you should check out the forthcoming 'Beach' EP from Australians San Cisco. OK so that's an overload of sunshine references right there; beach, Australia, San Francisco. Seems odd they've chosen a somewhat unseasonal release date for it though.

But maybe not that odd when you see the video for lead-track 'Beach' which sees the quartet larking about on a grey and blustery day on Brighton Beach. It's umbrellas for those on shore and wetsuits for the brave surfers. The song is pure warmth and beauty though, taking a sweet melody and throwing a bag of glitter over the top. It's devoid of the fuzz and rough edges that have categorised recent scenes, but this track is lush and really quite beautiful, containing added soul in the lead vocals and indiepop stylings that are allowed to shine. Perhaps that release date is perfect after all, San Cisco sound like a great winter warmer.



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Theatre Royal - At The End Of A River, The Sea...

Album review by KevW

South-Easterners Theatre Royal are a band that don't seem to fit. It may seem quite paradoxical but they're so conventional that they defy convention altogether. Hailing from Medway, the UK garage-rock capital, Theatre Royal don't design their songs to hark back to 60s beat groups or 70s punks; they're essentially an indie group, but they're not lo-fi or twee enough to be classed as indiepop, not arrogant and dull enough to be considered lad-rock; there may be depth and some excellent arrangements on this album but it's by no means experimental; they're not hard enough to be a rock group or commercial enough to be mainstream, yet they're not unique enough to be labelled uncategorizable. Unlike other bands they're not trying to be anything, and this subsequently makes them all the more thrilling.

As a collection of songs, 'At The End Of A River, The Sea...' is quite brilliant, stripped of any image or ideals other than simply writing great tracks. Great tracks like the majestic 'Death On The River' with its catchy and anthemic chorus, or the gloriously big sound of 'Home Of The Achingly Dull', or the driving burst of 'These Windows'. Because no apparent influences are being followed it leaves Theatre Royal the luxury of letting their songs form free from any set notions, aside from sounding as good as possible. You can feel the care and attention that's been put into each track, as though carefully nurtured and carefully considered, each with its own identity. The wistful, ballad-like 'Tall Ships' is full of passion and feeling, then it's immediately followed by the surging powerpop of 'I'm Leaving In The Morning (I Don't Think I'm Alive)'. There's not a duffer to be found, these guys have ensured that by setting what are obviously high standards.

If an album is to be a statement, something that this certainly feels like, then a fitting curtain-closer should be the icing on the cake. 'High Tide And Spring Time' doesn't disappoint on that front; it feels like closure, it feels like the end of a journey; a point of reflection and optimism. It's a grand finale that's even got a bloody false ending, just to drill home the fact that they're not messing about. If you want a label then I guess "guitar-pop" is generic enough to fit. Theatre Royal have made an honest album that is free from any pretense and not attached to any genre; it's a record that is, purely and simply, a cracking bunch of tunes. Tunes to sing along to, tunes to play again and again, tunes to get to know inside out; tunes to remember. In the age of pick and choose, skip and shuffle, it's been claimed that the art of making an 'album' has been lost, something that's simply not true and here is living proof. Theatre Royal have made an album in the truest sense, and it's one that's fit for a king.









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