A Sea of Split Peas - Courtney Barnett

I seem to spend my whole life going backwards. At least I do when it comes to listening to and collecting music. And this, I fear, is not an uncommon state for those with the affliction as me. It is inevitable that, upon the 'discovery' of a new favourite bit of music that the gear is rammed into reverse and the next period is spent hoovering up the bits that you've missed. And it can be quite time consuming. Good grief I remember the summer that I discovered U2 and the exhausting trawl through their back catalogue. It was quite expensive. And time consuming. It's different now of course, with a job and online music it can be done in a matter of an hour or so and without having to leave the comfort of your armchair. Or sofa. But at the rate of a CD per month it needs a little more devotion to the cause.

At least in the case of Courtney Barnett I didn't have far to go. One album or, if you're being pedantic, a collection of two EPs. Either way it was a short journey from her latest release 'Sometimes I Sit and Think, and Sometimes I Just Sit', the one that grabbed my attention with its low-fi sound, witty lyrics and hooks, to 'A Sea of Split Peas'. A debut album of sorts. OK, sorry compilation of EPs.

It's refreshing to hear in an age of meticulously honed, polished studio music that there is still room for some cool guitar pop-rock with intelligent lyrics. Nowhere is this more evident than on 'Avant Gardener' which tells the (presumably true) story of being stung whilst doing some weeding and ending up in hospital. 

Then there is the pop stomp of 'David', harking back to the hey-day of 70s glam rock but without the glitter and platform shoes. I suppose there is more than a hint of Suzy Quattro to the driving riff.

Elsewhere there are tints of Nirvana, the Cure and even Blur. The opening chord sequence to 'Lance Jr' wouldn't sound out of place on 'Nevermind', albeit one of the quieter tracks. 

The laconic vocal delivery won't be everyone's cup of tea but it is perfectly suited to the music and self referential lyrics. And give it a chance, after a couple of plays the harmonies start to stick and I guarantee you'll be singing the lyrics in your head for weeks to come.

 

Modern Nature - The Charlatans

Gosh, has it really been as long ago as October since I last posted a music musing? It really has. And it's not that've haven't been moved by new stuff. I have. Maybe not enough to be bothered to write some nonsense. Or maybe I've been preoccupied? 

Whatever the reason, the emergence of a new Charlatans album is surely enough to get me out of my slumber. That and a nudge from the northern hemisphere!

After all the hyperbole of 'Madchester' and 'Britpop', and the corresponding miles of column inches it is reassuring that there has been one constant - The Charlatans. 

Some might say that 'Modern Nature' is a return to form, harking back to the 'Sproston Green' era of the band. I disagree. The Charlatans never really lost their form, instead getting on quietly with making soulful, rounded albums.

It doesn't take long for 'Modern Nature' to reveal its class - a few beats into the opening track 'Talking In Tones' and it obvious this is going to be a stonker of an album. If we must hark back to the 1990s then this is every bit as good an opener as 'You're Not Very Well'. There, I said it!

'Modern Nature' is an album that has the sun at the centre of its focus; harmonious vocals, loops, house-esque piano riffs, funky organs and great guitars. If the lead single 'Come Home Baby', if there are such things as singles these days, wasn't enough to tempt you into the album then just try 'In the Tall Grass'. It's a funky soulful track and guaranteed to make you smile.

Equally 'Let The Good Times Never Be Ending' takes their 1990 sound as a blueprint and adds a modern pop sensibility. 

By the time the penultimate track 'Trouble Understanding' flexes your speaker cones with its laid back groove and big piano riff you'll feel like you've got one foot in the past and the other firmly in the future. It's a fantastic feat that the band have pulled off where others have failed. Are you listening U2? Now, thought not.

I never imagined that, as a nineteen year old in 1990 po-go-ing in Middlesbrough Town Hall to this fledgling band from Cheshire, that I'd still be listening twenty five years later. Then again, maybe the band never imagined they'd make is this far either.