The Woodentops:
Granular Tales:
Cherry Red:
24th February 2014:
★★★★★★★★★☆
Their first new album since 1988's Indie Chart-topping Wooden Foot Cops On The Highway, Granular Tales is as welcome a return as you could wish to experience. Anyone fearing what might have happened to indie-pop's greatest under-achievers (sales-wise, not musically) during the past two and a half decades can ease up on the pills and relax - they've knocked out twelve super songs that are the equal of most of debut-album Giant and superior to much of the aforementioned follow-up.
That the first song on Granular Tales is perhaps the most-unassuming and least like their previous output, only whets the appetite more. A Little More Time is a soft-shoe shuffle of a tune, merely acting as a gentle foil for the more aggressive, high-velocity thrust of A Pact and the first 20 seconds of would-be single Conversations. The latter is a playful skank that settles down into familiar McGinty territory and recalls Wheels Turning and Everything Breaks, rhythm-wise, demonstrating the Woodentops' relationship between pop and dance. Smokin' and Stay Out Of The Light both repeat the formula with aplomb.
Other highlights include the perky single proper Third Floor Rooftop High and the jaunty I'm Delighted, as well as the album's centrepiece Off To War and the closing, thoughtful Because Of You. Perhaps the only thing lacking with Granular Tales is the odd trademark foray into gritty popabilly, say a Love Train or a Get It On but, on the whole, Rolo and crew have crafted a timeless set of songs that will no doubt get cranked up for eventual and inevitable live performances. You could almost put the whole lot out as singles (well, what's stopping them?).
With the recently-issued and warmly-received triple-CD anthology Before During After causing a few ripples of interest again (well worth every damned penny), a tour is surely on the cards. Welcome back Woodentops.
Granular Tales:
Cherry Red:
24th February 2014:
★★★★★★★★★☆
That the first song on Granular Tales is perhaps the most-unassuming and least like their previous output, only whets the appetite more. A Little More Time is a soft-shoe shuffle of a tune, merely acting as a gentle foil for the more aggressive, high-velocity thrust of A Pact and the first 20 seconds of would-be single Conversations. The latter is a playful skank that settles down into familiar McGinty territory and recalls Wheels Turning and Everything Breaks, rhythm-wise, demonstrating the Woodentops' relationship between pop and dance. Smokin' and Stay Out Of The Light both repeat the formula with aplomb.
Other highlights include the perky single proper Third Floor Rooftop High and the jaunty I'm Delighted, as well as the album's centrepiece Off To War and the closing, thoughtful Because Of You. Perhaps the only thing lacking with Granular Tales is the odd trademark foray into gritty popabilly, say a Love Train or a Get It On but, on the whole, Rolo and crew have crafted a timeless set of songs that will no doubt get cranked up for eventual and inevitable live performances. You could almost put the whole lot out as singles (well, what's stopping them?).
With the recently-issued and warmly-received triple-CD anthology Before During After causing a few ripples of interest again (well worth every damned penny), a tour is surely on the cards. Welcome back Woodentops.