Peter McAuley's dramatic and sweeping rock nom-de-plume assembled once more in a box
7/10
According to legend (and because it says so on his website), young songwriter Peter McAuley is a bit enamored with the design aesthetics and principles of German designer Dieter Rams, who can lay claim to ten 'rules' that should be applied to creative processes. One of them has certainly been applied to this pile of EPs thrown together in a crude plastic sleeve - 'as little design as possible'.
Thankfully, another principle has been applied to the music inside - 'is thorough down to the last detail'. Because, quite simply, under his RAMS Pocket Radio guise, McAuley has ensured that every twist and turn that could have been squeezed from a musical phrase, has been. Somewhat surprisingly, considering his invitation to support Snow Patrol and Get Cape.Wear Cape.Fly on tour, little has been heard of his previously-issued EPs, until now. Again. Swift detective work reveals that this isn't such a new product after all - the three previously-released EPs have been previously-assembled in this format before. But hey, we're observing another RAMS principle - 'is long-lasting'.
The best of the EPs is 2011's "Dieter Rams Has Got The Pocket Radio", featuring the blistering blast of the title track, the busy piano-laced "Coal, My Lips Are Sealed", the pretty Aqualung-like "Friendship Fails You" and the less-essential but OK "Souvenir" (not an OMD cover, sadly). This release on its own is good enough to eat and does make me wonder how this didn't find itself in the same chart position as Keane or, indeed, Snow Patrol have found themselves in recently.
We reach another plain with the opening title-song on "1+2", a rousing powerhouse of a song designed to cause ructions in stadiums across the world but, in the current climate, may only bother Starbucks customers. With one foot in the '80s and the other in American soft-rock, "Body and the Sea" rolls gently by, while the other two songs I seem to have forgotten all about. One's called Swallow, that was OK I guess.
And things continue in a similar vein on "Dogs Run In Packs" - BIG pianos, BIGGER drums, faux-American vocals and a melody that dips and sways like it wants to be part of an Athlete record instead, while the remaining trio fall short in my aces-ometer(TM). I also think of Travis at one point - that's probably not good.
Without wishing to piss on McAuley's perfectly chopped chips, surely a better idea would have been to melt all these EPs down to make a nice new album instead? Because, when rearranged in a different order with the chaff discarded, Trajectories could have been a serious contender of 9 or 10 decent songs. There's no denying this though - Peter McAuley can craft a tune or two, he just needs someone to listen. So maybe buy the download package instead - here -> http://ramspocketradio.bandcamp.com/
7/10
Thankfully, another principle has been applied to the music inside - 'is thorough down to the last detail'. Because, quite simply, under his RAMS Pocket Radio guise, McAuley has ensured that every twist and turn that could have been squeezed from a musical phrase, has been. Somewhat surprisingly, considering his invitation to support Snow Patrol and Get Cape.Wear Cape.Fly on tour, little has been heard of his previously-issued EPs, until now. Again. Swift detective work reveals that this isn't such a new product after all - the three previously-released EPs have been previously-assembled in this format before. But hey, we're observing another RAMS principle - 'is long-lasting'.
The best of the EPs is 2011's "Dieter Rams Has Got The Pocket Radio", featuring the blistering blast of the title track, the busy piano-laced "Coal, My Lips Are Sealed", the pretty Aqualung-like "Friendship Fails You" and the less-essential but OK "Souvenir" (not an OMD cover, sadly). This release on its own is good enough to eat and does make me wonder how this didn't find itself in the same chart position as Keane or, indeed, Snow Patrol have found themselves in recently.
We reach another plain with the opening title-song on "1+2", a rousing powerhouse of a song designed to cause ructions in stadiums across the world but, in the current climate, may only bother Starbucks customers. With one foot in the '80s and the other in American soft-rock, "Body and the Sea" rolls gently by, while the other two songs I seem to have forgotten all about. One's called Swallow, that was OK I guess.
And things continue in a similar vein on "Dogs Run In Packs" - BIG pianos, BIGGER drums, faux-American vocals and a melody that dips and sways like it wants to be part of an Athlete record instead, while the remaining trio fall short in my aces-ometer(TM). I also think of Travis at one point - that's probably not good.
Without wishing to piss on McAuley's perfectly chopped chips, surely a better idea would have been to melt all these EPs down to make a nice new album instead? Because, when rearranged in a different order with the chaff discarded, Trajectories could have been a serious contender of 9 or 10 decent songs. There's no denying this though - Peter McAuley can craft a tune or two, he just needs someone to listen. So maybe buy the download package instead - here -> http://ramspocketradio.bandcamp.com/