2009's brightest hopes nearly split the office down the middle so severely last Friday there was almost blood & tears! Uncle Phil & AngryKidBrett (tm) were at loggerheads over whether we should still be pushing bands that are chartbound & have several thousand folks already shouting their name from vile magazine/gutter press column inches, when we could be promoting free jazz and garage rock records about the delights of the humble sausage. The Big Pink have that uncanny knack of impressing me one minute then pooing me right out the next. I can see why 4AD are backing them, they''ve got some remarkable scope soundwise, this kind of contemporary terrace friendly psychedelia element mixed with this bulldozery shoegaze guitar oblivion that proper twats your face off. So for some of this record truly are the missing link between the more commercial elements of Animal Collective & the swaying, euphoric segments of the largely awful Kasabian (who should stick to football having seen some YouTube footage of late) 'A Brief History of Love' is their album and is probably in the recommendations this week more for the tasty nudie sleeve than the actual contents. Brett thinks they're absolute rubbish but I find a respectable amount of their tunes stick addictively in your mind and at several junctures I'm weirdly reminded of Baby Bird, albeit a very bombastic radio shagging version. These are largely, pretty obvious, anthemic songs, designed for boozy Saturday nights in noisy townie bars, bustling football stadiums & for soundtracking sports highlights on the telly but I can't get too annoyed by it when I should maybe be stamping my foot & demanding a rendezvous with the God of music to ask why he/she got so leathered last night & let things slide so dreadfully. I think 'Love in Vain' should be their Xmas ballad and I still love 'Velvet' regardless of certain cynical naysaying types I work with. CD & expensive vinyl set coming soon!
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Sound clips for A Brief History Of Love by The Big Pink: on vinyl at Norman Records UK. Double LP (vinyl), 4AD, CADD2916, £15.99.
• 2009 started with a bang, with the ink just drying on a worldwide deal with 4AD – an ap move as their otherworldly qualities provide a direct sonic connection to some of the label’s most celebrated acts like Cocteau Twins, Dead Can Dance and TV On The Radio – they appeared high up in the critics vote BBC Sound poll and then received the prestigious Philip Hall Radar Award at the NME Awards, something that surprised all bu those that knew what was about to follow. • Ignoring all pressure, they headed to the Electric Lady Studios in New York to record and self- produce what was to become their epic debut album, ‘A Brief History of Love.’ • The job of mixing fell to Rich Costey (Mastodon, Muse, New Order, Rage Against The Machine) with the exception of ‘Velvet’, which was previously mixed by Alan Moulder (My Bloody Valentine, NiN, Smashing Pumpkins, Yeah Yeah Yeahs). • The final results are eleven stunning tracks that chart the trials of the heart, set within a sound-world that combines melody and beautiful noise in equal measure. • Previous singles, ‘Too Young To Love’ and ‘Velvet’ make the cut while live favourites like ‘Crystal Visions’, ‘Dominos’ and ‘Count Backwards From Ten’ all go towards creating a body of work so strong, it cements The Big Pink’s position as one of the finest and most important bands to emerge in years. • Also available – exclusively to independent retailers - a limited edition vinyl version featuring the heavyweight 2LP plus a bonus pink and white coloured vinyl 12” – one side etched and the other featuring an exclusive track.
