With almost fifty seconds of pure musical introduction, I Done Came Down proves to be a creatively free-flowing, partly organic and partly industrial whirlwind of rhythmic chaos; the sort that toys with your head-space.
Music
The creative life follows pathways as meandering as the artist’s own writing habits, and this track encapsulates that. Both Tolen and Saint Crown deliver with confidence and determination, adding in pace and grit but never so much so that it takes away from the fluidity of the music.
Undoubtedly, Translation is a release that grows more entertaining and immersive as it progresses. This classic and passionate approach to pop is always welcomed when it returns via such an authentic and energetic performance.
For a track supposedly made by accident, Ygor Sunny’s Guillotine is brilliantly engaging and beautifully hypnotic for the extent of its short-lived, one minute twenty five second life-span.
What sets the song apart from being viewed as an exercise in retro charm is the interesting choice of the samples and the snapping rhythm track. The choral sounds could have been curated for WOMAD by Peter Gabriel, and the fact that they don’t fit the chord progression super-snugly is a dissonant and spooky delight.
This bluesy, soulful cut delivers a message with all the passion you’d expect from the daughter of Grammy-nominated George and Gwen McCrae. Time to give God’s Way a try?
Each time the chorus comes around, its simple, insistent melody drills into your memory, floating above a Björk-like set of rhythmic patterns that seemingly arrive out of nowhere. This is a classy and intricate slice of pop that we should all get our ears around.
Treated strings swoon along like squeezeboxes, guitars work together with a comforting stereo spread. Bass quietly thrums and underpins. The harmonising to the lead vocal is effortless but vital. The harmonies chosen warm the song through to the core. It’s a delicate and thoughtful piece that showcases a tremendous, characterful vocal.
In an age of pitch correction and quantised instruments, here is a journey into sound that allows you to hear every pluck, every strum and every word with a vibrancy and clarity that speaks volumes about the live experience and about an exceptionally well-rehearsed band that have been honing their craft and chemistry together for the best part of twenty years.
Showtime Shegz digs right into contemporary turmoil and seeks to inspire and motivate with this album release, drawing you in from afar with some of the most intriguing artwork to emerge in recent years, and quickly sealing the deal with an opening track that directly and unabashedly addresses his desired audience in an open, honest way.
As emotional songs go, this one digs right into the heart – dog lovers be warned. The tears may flood, but the song also reminds you to appreciate those still with you. An absolute recommend.
Creep deals partly with what the title promises, though topics vary to keep things interesting, and it delivers consistently with this familiar Nirvana-style set-up and the unmistakable yet ever-unexpected innocence of that leading vocal tone.