Northerner - I Am On Your Side

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5...according to our Clinton on Fri 09 Mar, 2012.

The Clint home stereo is the most fickle of mistresses with its Roman Abramovich style approach to hiring and firing each hopeful release daring to kneel before its crown. One disc that has managed to escape its wrath over the past month or so has been this, the excellent third album from West Yorkshire based Northerner. Northerners previous releases have showcased a sound sandwiched somewhere between the plaintive guitar twiddling of Vini Reilly and the type of drifting ambience served up by hip micro labels such as Hibernate (on which Northerner released its second album '1976'). This record though is a much braver step into a sound that crosses genre's almost improbably, taking in all manner of influence from dub techno, funk, dub step, hip hop, distorted ambience and eerie electronica yet always retaining the original evocative guitar playing as its core. At times recalling Vini Reilly if signed to Basic Channel or a Pennine-based Burial, each track has its own distinct feel, from the soulful samples on the Bibio-esque opener 'Hey Come On, It's Love' to the gorgeous late night melancholy of the Detroit house styled 'Health and Safety'. 'Duty Paid' hits the nail firmly on the head with a gorgeous Tape-like acoustic guitar melody gradually disintegrating, replaced by dubby delay and distorted church bells. If the albums remit is to place Martin Cummings heavily affected, delicate guitar into as many differing musical landscapes as possible then most of the time it works splendidly, particularly on the outrageously slinky night time atmospheres of 'Cala Macarelleta', the Durutti Column-with-beats title track or the bleak, beaten closer 'To Where?'. An impressive, highly original album which importantly unfurls more of its charms on each play.

We are also delighted to be able to offer you the limited edition version containing a postcard with download codes for bonus remixes by Part Timer, The Green Kingdom, The Declining Winter, Fieldhead and Yuri Logovskoy, all of which tap into the curiously dislocated dub techno of parts of their parent album.

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Northerner's previous full length, 'The Ridings' dealt in the kind of hushed, glacial, ambient guitar soundscapes . Not this time. Cummings has upped the ante in quite spectacular fashion. Soaking up all manner of leftfield influences from dub techno to micro house, instrumental hip hop, funk, soul and dubstep to chilling post industrial noise to create an album of wildly varying textures all held in place by Cummings’s gorgeous, heavily effected Vini Reilly inspired guitar playing. Opener 'Hey Come On, It's Love' starts out with toy box Bibio beats, Robin Guthrie guitar and soulful sampled vocals - an immediately bold statement of intent, easing the listener into 'Shipley Hush' which recalls a Pennine born and bred Burial, building up deep cavernous dub explosions. Detroit House comes to the fore on the splendid 'Health and Safety' with choppy guitar battling for space with gorgeous late night melancholic synths, whilst 'Duty Paid' shows Cummings isn't out to isolate fans of his previous work with its beautiful, cascading acoustic guitar melodies gradually being overtaken by glitches, soul samples and eerie drones. Amongst the magpie-like production values it’s easy to forget what a great and distinctive guitarist Cummings is. When left to shine, as on the Durutti Column-like title track or the bleak, broken closer 'To Where?' Cummings produces some mellifluous, evocative playing. Nothing if not ambitious, this is an album which stretches its head over the parapet, unafraid of musical progression and genre splicing yet, crucially, retains a warm melodic heart. A beautiful series of snapshots of what can be achieved with the guitar and other machines. Northerner has previously released:-‘There’ll Be Other Holidays’ (Misplaced Music, 2008), ‘The Ridings’ (Home Assembly Music, 2009), ‘1976’ (Hibernate Recordings, 2009).

Tracklisting:
1. Hey Come On, It's Love
2. Shipley Hush
3. Health And Safety
4. Duty Paid
5. Line Noise
6. Cala Macarelleta
7. I Am On Your Side
8. Whistleblower
9. Worry About The Government
10. To Where?

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