Music Reviews: February 2016

Various Artists
Wigflex City Monsters
Cassette (Wigflex)
We begin with haunting womanly whispers and a looming sense of steady heaven from Blades’ One Shade the More, One Ray the Less, before being sucked into the dusty exhaust pipe of a night lorry trundling down a snowy road in Medicut’s MLP. Dubstep womps, intriguingly twisted vocals and interesting techno repetition is rife throughout this thirteen-track mix, all with intermittent pulls towards glittery outer space relief. The ascents soon smash to a halt as we are yanked back down to penetrate various planet surfaces, into hellish factory dungeons where intergalactic production lines await grafting movement. One particularly ‘ard underground army of workers are found in Medicut’s Poltergeist, where matrix numbers rise from heads as mantle chasms are steadily and brutally carved with ray guns.

Standout tracks for me are Nathan Fake’s Tuba, where nineties cop show undertones and chopped sand waves bubble with distress, and Metske’s Lustered Strings – packed with similar chaos but with an extra layer of pace, spacious organs elegantly thread pulses through electronic finger drums. Skewed fun can be found in Morris Cowan’s Billingham Synthonia, where we’re dropped in the middle of a digital carnival to play with bouncy, pixelated clowns beneath acid-warped circus tents. The journey to be had here is akin to a lifetime darting in and out of alternate universes, all available in a limited edition cassette tape that comes with a little plastic monster action figure, to play space dungeons with as you listen. His name is Barry Cob. Bridie Squires

Albosel
Making, Nothing
EP (Self-released)
Over the last decade it’s become all the more common to see the task of creating deep, emotional sounds left to the electronic music scene, crafting these sounds through complex and intricate machines and programmes. With this in mind, it feels not so much refreshing, but more intriguing to hear a band like Albosel create a collection of acoustic, dreamy lullabies that subvert the trend by writing and producing a wonderful stripped-back sound. This EP displays the ability of Albosel to construct melancholic and weightless sounds from few components, the most striking of which is the soothing, echoing vocals that grace each track, evoking a sense of intimacy not at all dissimilar to The xx’s debut album. A solid and promising start from a band offering but a small sample of things to come. George Ellis

Cici Lara
Monday
EP (Timeline Promotions)
To simply write Cici Lara off as a throwback jazz singer straight out of the fifties would do this EP injustice. That exemplary, slick, soul-drenched voice is backed up by tight production evoking classic love songs with a hint of Timbaland-esque beats. Kicking off with the aptly named Lovers Paradise, including a string arrangement akin to that in Sinatra’s masterpiece, In The Wee Small Hours. The eeriness gradually seeps through as Lara’s rich vocal range takes the track into an atmosphere of anguished, pain-stricken beauty, creating a sound that’s as addictive as it is uncomfortable. Honey and Break Lights follow a similar trend of estranged piano medleys invoking the raw emotional trajectory of neo-soul pioneers Jill Scott and Erykah Badu. Jealous Type perfectly concludes the release, with a stripped back slow tempo groove and sprinklings of futuristic production. A wonderful, spirited debut. Jack Garofalo

DH Lawrence & The Vaudeville Skiffle Show
Sons & Lovers
Album (Self-released)
Notts has quite a bit in common with the rural south of America – outlaws, heavy drinking, in-breeding (probably). So a Notts-based Americana band seems like a country marriage made in heaven. Throw in a heavy dose of Eastwood’s most famous son, and a very Notts vernacular, and you have DH Lawrence & the Vaudeville Skiffle Show. Borrowing from Lawrence’s infamous 1913 work, title track Sons & Lovers is an awesome mix of fiddles, washboards, and the mythos of Nottinghamshire colliers and pits. Another Lawrence nod, Lady Chatterley’s Bower, is a sweet ode to rambling and rolling in the hay with some fluttery chanteuse (we’re spared any Sean Bean-style grunts). There are calmer, more thoughtful moments too, such as on Seventeen, but the highlights are when they really get their skiffle on. These guys have won high praise for their live shows – just remember to bring your own jug of moonshine. Shariff Ibrahim

Fonsze
Life
Mixtape (Certified Blood & Family)
What is life? While Nietzsche, Sartre and all those other existentialist types roundly failed in solving the question, Notts rapper Fonsze steps up to provide answers on his new mixtape. Being thankful to be alive, and having the love of your family, posits Fonsze on the spoken word intro. He examines the concept further on the outro, What’s Life?, a Sunscreen for the trap beat and Henny generation. In between, Fonsze shows he’s an accomplished wordsmith as well as philosopher, on the introspective Outta Here, breezy Feels Like and Can’t Let Her, as well as the more grimy Mr Miyagi, and straight-up bangers Trapped In and Track, with Omie Omz. A great debut, and while any rapper flipping Oh No and 9th Wonder beats with a Notts accent is alright by me, I’m really looking forward to hearing Fonzse carve out a sound and philosophy all of his own on a full length album. Shariff Ibrahim

Prime
IOU
EP (Self-released)
This debut EP from the Notts rockers sees a melting pot of influences from a cross section of Brit pioneers to formulate a sound that grows on your consciousness with every playback. Fronted by the indistinguishable flamboyance of front man Lee Heir with his infectious vocals, Prime are fast becoming a staple name on the Notts circuit and this EP firmly solidifies their status as one of the hardest working bands this city has seen. Kicking off with the title track, a luscious combination of the ska-infused tracks of The Clash and falsetto-entwined heavy rock. No Sign of Life is pure heartfelt sombre Britpop that evokes memories of the nostalgic nineties with its catchy yet innovative guitar riff and heavy hitting rhythm. Free and Easy closes the EP in romantic ballad fashion with its heavenly sweet vibe, captivating the listener into a dreamlike haze. Expect Prime to be making huge waves in the not so distant future. Jack Garofalo

Ropewalk
On Your Hands
Album (Self-released)
Since first getting together in 2011, Ropewalk haven’t been idle, releasing a series of EPs, each one demonstrating a clear step forward for the band as their sound and songwriting develop. An album was the logical next step, and it certainly doesn’t disappoint. We’ve heard many of the songs here before, but from the opening chords of Screams of Remains, a song that featured on the band’s debut EP back in 2012, it’s obvious that everything has changed. The songs are familiar, but the band are heavier and more muscular than we’ve heard them before. Whatever they’ve been doing since their last EP, it clearly suits them – there’s a depth to their sound now that just elevates them into an entirely different league. They sound epic. Ropewalk were good before, but this album is a huge step up in quality and must surely now make the band big contenders. Highly recommended. Tim Sorrell

Ryan Farmer
Lurch
EP (Self-released)
The country and blues singer from Nottingham – with a voice sounding so soaked in decades worth of bourbon you could mistake him for a greying blues veteran – has brought out a new instalment of his infectious music. From the slow tempo, soft, and beautifullsounding Tennessee Line, to his own fun take on Sixteen Tons, you’d be forgiven for assuming Ryan is a born and bred folksy American. It’s not just his voice that catches your ear drums and has you hooked – the music has an authentic country feel to it, that appears to come effortlessly to Ryan. The  stripped-back tracks showcase his pure talent with a much more mature feel to the album than we’ve heard from him before. The perfect platform for showing off his musical maturity that has been honed from the many gigs that he’s performed around Notts. Hannah Parker

Various Artists
I Believe In Miracles OST
Album (Sony Music)
All too often, film soundtracks completely miss the point of capturing the narrative’s particular time in music and culture. I Believe In Miracles, however, completely defeats that suggestion. This soul and disco-heavy arrangement of classic numbers perfectly transports you back to a time when cultural freedom and champagne football poured over Britain oh so joyously. The utter genius, and nigh on impossibility, of what Brian Clough did during the late seventies and early eighties is beautifully accompanied by some of the finest groove funk classics from Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes to famous Notts resident Edwin Starr. A subtle nod to the inspirational Summer Madness by Kool and The Gang (Will Smith fans, you know yourselves) is a personal favourite, however every single track on this album is pure nostalgia-infused beauty designed to perk up the deadest of dancefloors. What more could you ask for to match such an enthralling film? Jack Garofalo

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