...according to our Brian on Fri 10 Jul, 2009.
Slow Club. Norman Records are the slow club, this came out last week and seeing as though I was stuck in the middle of a muddy field in Lancashire trying to erect a tent whilst drinking some stupidly strong cider the overworked boys opted to give 'Yeah So' a miss in favour of some of the more challenging & esoteric varieties of music we sell. Shame 'cause this boy/girl duo write some proper ace fuzzy pop shamblers that kinda remind me of The Loves from Wales. It's got the heart of skool disko pop with a bit of a sha-la-la vibe and an open, honest attitude. I can see Pipettes fans giving this some stereo time & some of the simple, timeless harmonies propping up the more discerning indie nights around your area. They do some nice folksier foot tappers too, their beautifully matched vocals entwining quite charmingly. Good honest homely indie pop! CD on Moshi Moshi.
A much longed-for debut from an already much loved duo, Yeah, So is the album from Slow Club released on 6th July on Moshi Moshi.
From the outset there is something immediately familiar and yet vitally inventive about Slow Club; the riotous rallying calls of Because We’re Dead and Dance ‘Til The Morning Light, the unlikely anti-folk ‘epics’ Giving Up On Love and Our Most Brilliant Friends; songs built on skiffling ‘Crickets’ rhythms and the lost art of a good middle eight. Throughout the album the twin voices of Charles Watson and Rebecca Taylor conspire with an unmistakably youthful vigour, bookended by the deft ballads When I Go and Boys On Their Birthdays, dexterous soliloquies of admission and humour.
A string of single releases on their label home Moshi Moshi, and crucial development time on the live circuit has made Slow Club an irresistible prospect. Live as on record, Charles and Rebecca enrapture audiences with the same involuntary joy and simplistic rush that they themselves imbue. Their highly developed partnership delivering sweet harmonious hooks, rockabilly beats and exuberant yelps and yips, that spill out across the album.
As with Slow Clubs early singles, Yeah So was recorded almost entirely within the bosom of their hometown Sheffield, with Richard Hawley’s long term live and studio engineer Mike Timm at controls. His involvement according to Charles, was vital “Being a duo its often difficult to ‘let go’ on certain decisions… Mike has been really important providing a ‘buffer state’ between us.”
There is occasional instrumental and vocal assistance from David Glover, and a closing track appearance by Brian O'Murchu (drums) and Jamie Morrison (glass bottle!), but Slow Club are defined by a their own distinct and powerful partnership. Charles with bruised vocal, rasping guitar and disarming lightness of touch; Rebecca with her dash of Northern Soul and sharp wit, playing stand up drums amid a wild array of percussive apparatus - wooden chairs, glass bottles, and spoons.
These two are more than charming anti-folk troubadours or the lo-fi acoustic end of the Sheffield scene; they are the real thing. That spontaneous intangible ‘thing’ that comes jumping off records and crackling off the stage, hanging crystalline for fleeting moments to confound and intrigue.
TRACKLISTING: 1) WHEN I GO 2) GIVING UP ON LOVE 3) I WAS UNCONSCIOUS, IT WAS A DREAM 4) IT DOESN’T HAVE TO BE BEAUTIFUL 5) BECAUSE WERE DEAD 6) THERE IS NO GOOD WAY TO SAY I AM LEAVING YOU 7) THE TROPHY ROOM 8) DANCE ‘TIL THE MORNING LIGHT
9) COME ON YOUTH 10) SORRY ABOUT THE DOOM 11) APPLES AND PAIRS 12) OUR MOST BRILLIANT FRIENDS
BONUS CD: 1. Lets Fall Back In Love 2. Me & You 3. Wild Blue Milk 4. Christmas TV 5. Because We're Dead (Live at Union Chapel) 6. I Was Unconcious It Was A Dream (Live at Union Chapel) 7. There's No Good Way To Say I'm Leaving You (Live at Union Chapel) 8. Trophy Room (Live at Union Chapel) 9. Sorry About The Doom (Live at Union Chapel)
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