| CD Review - I Was A Cub Scout - I Want You To Know That There Is Always Hope |
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11 track CD Album (XL Records AXLCD323) |
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| Review by Pete |
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I'm not particulary inclined to violence but I can imagine inflicting a dirty look at least upon the thug who at a gig in Southampton last month threw a beer glass in Todd Marriott's face giving him a fat lip and nearly knocking his teeth out. Todd's from round here after all...
...well, sort of from round here. He and Will Bowerman come from Collingham and Long Bennington, towns down the tracks in Notts though both are now living close to their fave pub in Grantham, The Black Dog. So, from round here more in the sense that a few years back they regularly showed up to play little venues in our town cos this was their gigging backyard. Which makes it all the more surprising nobody here on lincolnbands has reviewed their debut album yet and it's been out for weeks. C'mon! How many local bands actually get signed, get to do world tours, earn themselves consistenly appreciative press? This is a result. Well done you IWACS boys.
I was lucky enough to have seen 'em play twice early on, at The Biv and later at The Cell. Immense sets - way too short, though! And it still makes me happy recollecting how special and exciting those gigs were. Even though they weren't sold-out nights (the Biv was half full, the Cell had maybe 80 people in) everybody who was there will I reckon remember the buzz.
Key memories include Todd's stack of mini keyboards, Will's headphones, the kookily neurotic way Todd detoured around the stage, the smiley, breezy drumming. Oh and an avalanche of powerhouse electro pop songs with emotional weight that were interestingly complex and gorgeously cute. Will came across as matey and enjoying his playing, Todd seemed a bit grumpy and not at ease working a crowd. I wasn't sure if the grumpy half of IWACS was not too pleased to have me there in his face taking pics either. (Thanks for not chucking a beer glass at me.)
So that was a couple of years ago, yeah, they've been back and played the Engine Shed since they got established as a superhero duo - but nah warehouse sized venues don't really do it for me so I skipped going. Listening to this album is like finding out what happened after.
Seems it was three weeks in the making late last summer in a west London studio working with industry heavyweight Hugh Padgham who took charge of everything from the actual recording to the production and the final mixing. Oh and making the tea. Oh and fucking taming Will Bowerman's percussive input to the point it's obscured and underused. Fuck that. I was anticipating something ferocious from Will Powerman so in terms of making the most of those tour de force drums this is way, way, way too cautious. You divvy, Mr Padgham.
The glorious 50:50 partnership has gone but the surprise is that in the decision to push everything onto Todd's synths and sequencing it has not resulted in somthing wanky and emasculated. It may be more XFM friendly - and is a shoe-in for a complete season of Skins on Four - but it's a relief to find it's still got plenty of integrity built in. The emotional content is finely judged (mostly the chirpy side of miserable - which about does it for me) and there's a kilo of white hot sparkly bits, all sorts of witty ideas crackling away. As for those dinky synths - they are allowed to run around, curious, arms wide open, melty, amiable, wishful, loitering, peppy, silly, skyscape big, oomphy, fun. What Will gets to do he does effortlessly well. The main man's vocals are excellent, sometimes great even, plying a Midlands accent that convinces and more importantly feels contemporary. It's not all sombre either, the biggest surprise though - and a laugh out loud moment - was the arrival late on of a track with an unexpected Libertines inflected vocal. No way! Wayyyy!
This album has only faint echoes of the masculine neuro sound I heard a long time ago yet it's sort of OK in the end cos what has been put down here is solid from start to finish. A selection of interesting songs, fully worked out and beautifully crafted.
Some rewind photos from early gigs at www.shine.clara.co.uk/gigs webspace.
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This page was last updated Monday, 11 January 2010
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