Field Music, Piskie Sits and Starflower
1 Comments Published by Russ on Saturday, January 20, 2007 at 22:31.
Hello, i'm Russ. I'm new round here. I got to know Tom through him buying releases from my label, Freedom Road Records. He's asked me to return the favour and review some CDs for him, so here we are.
Field Music – A House Is Not A Home (Memphis Industries)
Field Music are a band I’d always written off in the past as the Futureheads annoying little cousins. Turns out I was way wrong, as the evidence in the single proves. There’s still an element of wonkyness to the single, as you might expect from a band that had spent so much time with the Futureheads (and indeed shared band members), but they’ve taken this one step further and turned into something far more intriguing than their counterparts. There’s a very seventies soft rock feel to it, but with twists and turns, and even elements of prog but with the knowledge of when to hold back and stick in a melody. Field Music have done an incredible thing and come up with something that sounds like nothing else around, an intricate pop single with a difference.
Piskie Sits – The Secret Sickliness (Wrath Records)
The debut Piskie Sits album wears its alt. American rock influences on its sleeve loud and proud. It starts off in fine fashion with the Pavement aping ‘No Hidden Chord’ complete with big multi vocalled chorus and ‘Big Fat Mouth’, all fuzzy melodies and a hint of the deranged mess that was the Vines. The problem is, like so many albums nowadays there’s little of substance in that which follows. Not that it’s bad, if consistent deranged slacker pop is your bag you’ll be happy, its just that nothing else stands out particularly.
Starflower – Moment In The Sun (Music Is My Girlfriend)
The debut from Starflower, a Finnish four piece, is a delightful album that slipped under the radar last summer. It’s at turns ramshackle and naïve, then accomplished and far-reaching. There’s echoes of Suburban Kids With Biblical Names and fey eighties disco pop, but it can also be lush and pastoral. The vocalist has that lovely light murmur that David Gedge employs to such great effect and this compliments the music perfectly. While not quite in the league of Field Music, this is another great example of how pop doesn’t always have to be simple, it can be a great multi-layered joy too.
Field Music – A House Is Not A Home (Memphis Industries)
Field Music are a band I’d always written off in the past as the Futureheads annoying little cousins. Turns out I was way wrong, as the evidence in the single proves. There’s still an element of wonkyness to the single, as you might expect from a band that had spent so much time with the Futureheads (and indeed shared band members), but they’ve taken this one step further and turned into something far more intriguing than their counterparts. There’s a very seventies soft rock feel to it, but with twists and turns, and even elements of prog but with the knowledge of when to hold back and stick in a melody. Field Music have done an incredible thing and come up with something that sounds like nothing else around, an intricate pop single with a difference.
Piskie Sits – The Secret Sickliness (Wrath Records)
The debut Piskie Sits album wears its alt. American rock influences on its sleeve loud and proud. It starts off in fine fashion with the Pavement aping ‘No Hidden Chord’ complete with big multi vocalled chorus and ‘Big Fat Mouth’, all fuzzy melodies and a hint of the deranged mess that was the Vines. The problem is, like so many albums nowadays there’s little of substance in that which follows. Not that it’s bad, if consistent deranged slacker pop is your bag you’ll be happy, its just that nothing else stands out particularly.
Starflower – Moment In The Sun (Music Is My Girlfriend)
The debut from Starflower, a Finnish four piece, is a delightful album that slipped under the radar last summer. It’s at turns ramshackle and naïve, then accomplished and far-reaching. There’s echoes of Suburban Kids With Biblical Names and fey eighties disco pop, but it can also be lush and pastoral. The vocalist has that lovely light murmur that David Gedge employs to such great effect and this compliments the music perfectly. While not quite in the league of Field Music, this is another great example of how pop doesn’t always have to be simple, it can be a great multi-layered joy too.
been curious about the piskie sits for ages. Never made the leap into getting a 7" of theirs.