Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit – Here We Rest - April 2011 April 24th, 2011

Often regarded as The Drive-By Truckers’ most talented member, only to leave and find his belatedly acclaimed colleagues surpass him, Jason Isbell might appear to be Alt Country’s Robbie Williams. The eleven tracks on his perfectly paced third solo collection politely play out just as one might expect, from dainty fiddle driven numbers to lightly…

The Chemistry Set – This Day Will Never Happen Again - April 2011 April 24th, 2011

The resurgence of the Eighties psychedelic scientists The Chemistry Set is due to Music Blogs, tacitly tolerated websites offering illegal downloads of unavailable music. The Chemistry Set’s lone 1989 album has over ten thousand recent rips, dwarfing actual sales enjoyed upon its released, and softening the Set’s comeback trail. On a second, much delayed, album,…

The Wave Pictures – Beer In The Breakers - April 2011 April 17th, 2011

With their two colour sleeves and occasional vinyl only releases, Wymeswold’s The Wave Pictures are iconic figures to indie rock puritans. But Beer In The Breakers transcends such perceptions. Taped live and loose, with no overdubs, in a Walthamstow flat by fellow traveller Darren Hayman of Hefner, the rattling kit rushes to catch up with…

Comet Gain – Howl Of The Lonely Crowd - April 2011 April 17th, 2011

Since the mid-nineties, Comet Gain have invoked a holy trinity of Eighties Twee Indie, Seventies Punk and Sixties soul sounds, their early ubiquity on the London circuit perhaps devaluing their currency. But the patronage of their new producer Ryan Jarman, of the currently fashionable group The Cribs, provides fleeting focus for new fans. Comet Gain’s…

Stranded Horse – Humbling Tides - April 2011 April 9th, 2011

When the Frenchman Yann Tambour released his previous records as Thee Stranded Horse he was attempting mystery in a second language. Forgive Tambour. He plucks cascades of twinkling notes from a twenty-one string Kora, and his studiously subdued vocals, in French and English, now suggest the timeless tunes of some travelling Medieval troubadour, rather than…

The Saints – All Times Through Paradise - April 2011 April 9th, 2011

This four disc set of the first three studio albums by Brisbane’s punk pioneers The Saints was first issued in 2004, its newly compact packaging reflecting the diminishing shelf space of its forty-something consumers. But the kids should at least download the ’76 disc I’m Stranded for its perfect meeting of mess and melody, and…