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Highlighting in album tracklistings denotes 'contains Mellotron'. On 'multi-part' tracks I've tried to indicate which parts contain 'Tron, although this isn't always possible.
Ratings:
The * rating (½-5) is my personal, entirely subjective and completely partisan rating of the music.
The 'T' ('Tron, of course...) rating (0-5) is an only slightly more objective indicator of an album's Mellotronness.
By the way, if you know of any Mellotron albums that aren't listed here, please look at my albums page first! Thanks.
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Strange Advance Stray Strider |
String Cheese Incident Strokes Strongbow |
Joe Strummer Styx Suede |
Sugarbomb Cree Summer Sundae Club |
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2wo (1985, 42.03) ***/T |
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| I'll Be the One to Cry The Second That I Saw You We Run Prelude Home of the Brave The Sounds of Life Blue Fire Just Like You |
Running Away Nor Crystal Tears |
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You must be getting a bit sick of me saying this by now, but this one's a bit of an oddity. Not just its musical style (synth-pop) or era (mid-'80s), but for the Mellotron Strange Advance owned: the 4-Track. "The what?", I hear you cry? The 4-Track was a last-ditch (US) innovation on the tape-replay front, flying in the face of The Future, in the shape of digital technology and sampling. As far as I can work out, instead of single-track heads on a moveable block, the 4-Track had (wait for it) 35 matched 4-track heads, with either three or four track tape running across them, enabling the player to mix'n'match sounds at will. Whether it actually worked like that is a bit of a moot point, as only a handful were made (some sources quote as few as four), and the whereabouts of any of them now is unknown. What's more, it was a bit of a visual monstrosity, being made of pressed aluminium, giving it a faint resemblance to a washing machine, assuming you turned it sideways and added a keyboard (see below).
Stop press: However... Band member Drew Arnott contacted me recently, telling me that although the band owned one of these expensive beasties (record company cash, don'cha know?), it sounded so awful that they actually used a regular M400. According to Drew, the manufacturer had 'raved about the sounds', saying that they'd 'improved on the originals by a factor of ten' (yeah, you work that one out). Not only did the sounds 'suck', but the metal cabinet had edges so sharp that you could cut yourself on it. Classy... So the prize for 'first known recording of a 4-Track' is still to be won, it would seem.
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| photo: Robert Laughton. source: Candor Chasma (http://egrefin.free.fr/) | |
Although their debut, Worlds Away, is supposed to be Strange Advance's classic, 2wo is all I have, so it'll have to do until I track down a copy of its predecessor. The band were Canada's answer to the early-'80s synth-pop boom, with far too many synths (although I hear they used massed Prophet Vs at one point, which can't be bad), more slap bass than you can shake a stick at and a singer who sounded a lot like David Bowie. Actually, the album sounds surprisingly normal at times, with tracks like Running Away featuring guitar, piano and other un-synthlike instruments, and while the songwriting is reasonable, this is never going to be rated alongside Japan, Soft Cell et al., not that Japan were actually synth-pop per se, anyway.
Arnott's M400 can only be heard on a couple of tracks here (which explains why what I thought was a 4-Track sounds disappointingly like an M400), with strings on opener I'll Be The One To Cry and choirs (and possibly strings) on We Run, although I think the orchestralish strings on moody album closer (and best track?) Nor Crystal Tears are synth-generated. So; in lieu of hearing their debut, this will have to do for the present, although neither music nor Mellotron are especially noteworthy. Incidentally, Arnott got to know producer Bruce Fairbairn, and played 'Tron on Aerosmith's seminal Permanent Vacation a few years later.
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Suicide (1971, 38.33) ****½/T½Son of the FatherNature's Way Where Do Our Children Belong Jericho Run Mister Run Dearest Eloise Do You Miss Me Suicide |
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Stray were one of the first wave of British hard rock bands, and deserved better than the near-obscurity they achieved. Their first, self-titled album and Suicide are classics of bluesy hard rock with extra added something; think early-'70s Groundhogs but more adventurous. Guitarist Del Bromham played Mellotron strings on Suicide's opening track, Son Of The Father to great effect, plus some on the balladic Dearest Eloise, but it's a real shame he didn't make more use of the instrument; Jericho may well have benefitted from its addition, too.
As a fan, I'd say buy both Stray (****½) and Suicide, but it's up to you whether or not you consider this one worth the effort solely for its 'Tron content. p.s. Thanks to Tony Haynes for pointing out that I'd missed Dearest Eloise. Oops...
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Misunderstood (1974, 40.18) ****/TTOpen Your EyesMisunderstood Crossed Lines Seems So Easy Already Monday Wing Tips Take it or Leave it Searching the Clouds |
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Strider were one of those second-division UK acts who only managed one really good album; I searched for their first, Exposed (**), for years, only to find that it was disappointingly average. Misunderstood, on the other hand, is well worth the effort; hard rock without being overbearingly heavy, it's got great songs, all-round good musicianship and superb dynamics (listen to opener Open Your Eyes for proof). There's a couple of tracks on side two with some 'Tron strings from Ian Kewley, but they're not exactly classics of the genre; Wing Tips is excellent, a bit of a mini-epic, in fact, and Take It Or Leave It is more of a rocker, with a quick burst of 'Tron in the slow middle-eight and its reprise. There may just possibly be some sustained notes (overdubbed?) on closer Searching The Clouds, but it's hard to tell, to be honest.
So, buy the album 'cos it's good, but don't bother for the 'Tron or, indeed, the crap sleeve notes (though not as crap as on their debut). Oh, and talking of which, avoid Exposed like the plague.
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Untying the Not (2003, 54.24) ***½/TT |
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| Wake Up Sirens Looking Glass Orion's Belt Mountain Girl Lonesome Road Blues Elijah Valley of the Jig |
Tinder Box Just Passin' Through Who am I? Time Alive On My Way |
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The String Cheese Incident are one of that peculiar brand of US acts that have sprung up in the '90s in the wake of the Grateful Dead: 'Jam Bands'. If you're not au fait with the genre, it seems to consist of bands who might otherwise have little in common with each other, but who have become intertwined due to their love of, well, jamming. Clearly, this is hardly a new phenomenon, and even the jamband culture is merely a follow-on from the Deadheads, but bands like Phish (spiritual leaders in a post-Dead world), Blues Traveler and (resisting the term strongly) The Dave Matthews Band ride high in the pantheon of Jam Bands, as against the Allman Brothers Band, who pithily describe themselves as a 'band who jams'. Semantics, Schmemantics. Of course, basing your style on your live sound is all well and good, but how do you translate that onto record? The Dead always ran into problems on that front, and so do their successors. The commonest solution seems to be to (like the Dead) write vaguely country rock-ish songs, then embellish them with a little taste of how you'd treat them onstage, presumably more to give your fans an idea of how your jams might start than to have, y'know, hit singles or anything.
The String Cheese Incident's Untying the Not (ho ho) is their seventh album, and fearlessly mixes genres in true jamband style, throwing in a capella (Lonesome Road Blues), dancefloor hoedown (Valley Of The Jig) and a faintly reggae-ish groove (Sirens), with several examples of the vaguely country rock-ish style mentioned above. Plenty of 'psychedelic' spoken-word interludes from various people, not least one from a certain Carolyn Garcia, widow of the late Jerry, with most tracks running into each other in true psych style. Live, this album would last three hours; luckily, a combination of the CD format and common sense has kept it to slightly below one on record, where it doesn't outstay its welcome.
For some reason (availability?), keys man Kyle Hollingsworth has opted to add a Mellotron to his usual organ/piano setup this time round. There are a few background string chords on opener Wake Up, but the album's major 'Tron contribution is on Hollingsworth's piano/violin instrumental Elijah, with string and flute parts weaving in and out of the mix. Faintly 'Strawberry Fields'-style flutes open Who Am I?, carrying on throughout the song, with strings here and there, finishing up with more strings on Time Alive. I have to say, the Mellotron sounds pretty authentic, though it's so hard to tell these days; the strings are wobblier than you'd expect from samples, and lack the squeaky-cleanness of the digital variety, so let's hope, eh?
So; given my lack of knowledge of the genre, this seems to be a decent enough example of jambandmanship, but those of you with little tolerance for what is, essentially, a sub-Grateful Dead experience should probably steer clear. Some nice 'Tron work, though not really enough to make it worth buying for that alone, even though I did.
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First Impressions of Earth (2006, 52.19) ***/T |
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| You Only Live Once Juicebox Heart in a Cage Razor Blade On the Other Side Vision of Division Ask Me Anything Electricityscape |
Killing Lies Fear of Sleep 15 Minutes Ize of the World Evening Sun Red Light |
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The Strokes are a band about whom I've read a great deal, but heard very little, or indeed, nothing, which is what happens when you avoid the mainstream media as assiduously as myself. Going by their third album, First Impressions of Earth, their sound is noticeably informed by early-'80s New Wave and the tediously ubiquitous Velvet Underground. OK, the Velvets were good, but am I alone in thinking they're a tad overrated? Anyway, The Strokes manage to cover a fair bit of ground on the album, while toning down the treble assault of their first two releases, which doesn't stop a lot of the material making one reach for the 'next' button.
The album's only real triumph, funnily enough, is the drumless, guitarless Ask Me Anything, which is essentially Julian Casablancas (that name!) singing over guitarist Nick Valensi's complex Mellotron cello part, with another unidentified sound coming in towards the end. Magnificent! Why can't more bands use the mighty 'Tron like this? It sounds genuine, with a low double bass note that many sample sets would probably miss, and is surprisingly well-played for such an awkward instrument.
So; an album that just about scrapes three stars, with a completely essential 'Tron track. What to do? It hasn't been released as a single (yet) - maybe this is what the social evil of paid downloads is for? One great track, not too much money. Obtain, but don't go out of your way for the album.
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Strongbow (1975, 39.48) ***½/T½One Armed BanditSister Sea The Only One Around Move Over Gloom How Can I Be Loving You Wine Eyes Hazy May |
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Never let it be said that I don't find utter obscurities for you (as if you would). Strongbow were a mid-'70s US outfit, falling somewhere in between typical Midwest rock and prog-lite, who (to my knowledge) released just the one, eponymous album on the local Southwind label. One Armed Bandit opens with an intriguing sequenced synthesizer part before shifting gear into more mainstream rock, and while Sister Sea has its moments, 
the excitement factor is rather lacking in places. I had high hopes for The Only One Around, at nearly ten minutes, but it turns out to be a soft-rock epic with a proggy edge. Move Over Gloom and Hazy May are the most dynamic tracks on offer here, but Strongbow sound like a band who weren't quite sure what they wanted to be; to prog or not to prog? Like so many competent bands, especially in the vast hinterlands of the US, I expect they were popular locally, but, like all but the extremely lucky few, they were never going to break out nationally, let alone internationally. As you can see from the enclosed rear-sleeve pic, their fashion sense left a little to be desired, too.
John Stelzer doubled on keys and wind instruments, with vocalist Bill Bendler covering both pianos and electric trombone, apparently. Stelzer's Mellotron work is fairly sparse, with just a few string chords at the end of Sister Sea, although The Only One Around has a little more, scattered throughout the song. Hazy May would definitely have benefitted from its inclusion, but he opted to confine its use to the two tracks on side one, making me think that they almost certainly didn't own a machine, but used the studio's own/hired one in for the session.
So; an OK, so-so sort of album, with a few bright spots, raising it above the 'three star quagmire' of albums about which I can't get even vaguely enthused. I didn't pay that much for my copy, but it was still probably slightly too much. In other words, pick up if you see it cheap.
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Streetcore (2003, 41.58) ***½/T½Coma GirlGet Down Moses The Long Shadow Arms Aloft in Aberdeen Ramshackle Day Parade Redemption Song All in a Day Burnin' Streets Midnight Jam Silver & Gold |
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John "Joe Strummer" Mellor never really lost his status as 'punk icon' after the Clash finally (and messily) dissolved, even during his 'wilderness years' of the '90s. He worked his way through various bands and lineups, finally settling on the Mescaleros in the late '90s; he'd just finished recording their third album, Streetcore, when he tragically died of a heart attack, aged just 50. The album's really very good; from the propulsive Coma Girl through the American folk of The Long Shadow (written for Johnny Cash, where Strummer finally, posthumously earns his '70s nickname, Woody), to his reggae-free take on Bob Marley's Redemption Song.
Martin Slattery plays Mellotron and Chamberlin; I can already hear some wizened old mohawks whinging that those instruments 'aren't very punk' (not that they're likely to read this site, but you know what I mean...). Well, you know what? Not only does none of Strummer's solo work fit into that straitjacket, but neither does most of the Clash's back-catalogue; even their 'none more punk' debut has a six-minute reggae track on it... Anyway, Slattery sticks some cranky-sounding (Mellotron?) strings onto Burnin' Streets, which sounds like a belated answer to the Clash's London's Burning, from 25 years earlier, and what may be Chamberlin strings and 'Tron flutes on the following Midnight Jam, which quotes London Calling this time.
So; if you like the sound of a trawl through much of the 20th century's musical styles, all in 40-odd minutes, by someone whose delivery was never less than heartfelt, you could do an awful lot worse than invest in a copy of Streetcore. Joe was renowned for giving a shit, be it about environmental issues, politics or his fans, so it's good to see his legacy being upheld by a posthumous release this good. I'm really not a fan of his work with the Clash (and I saw them in '78, so I know what I'm talking about), but it would take an unfeasible level of churlishness to knock it, although its tape-replay input is far from a major component of its sound. Worth hearing, whatever.
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The Serpent is Rising (1973, 40.07) ***½/TT |
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| Witch Wolf The Grove of Eglantine Young Man As Bad as This Winner Takes All 22 Years Jonas Psalter The Serpent is Rising |
Krakatoa Hallelujah Chorus |
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7" (1974) ***/TTT Young Man Unfinished Song |
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Well, here's proof that some of my firmly (dearly?)-held beliefs re. Mellotron use can be overturned in an instant. I'm utterly convinced that there's not a jot of 'Tron on any of the four major-label Styx albums I own, although I've been told more than once that they used one at some point. And here it is. The Serpent is Rising, their third album for the Chicago-based Wooden Nickel label, is similar to the band's other early albums (Styx, Styx II and Man of Miracles), in having elements of what they were to become (for better or worse), but without the killer songs. There's some reasonably good material, but they're the work of a band still trying to find their feet, with no sign of a Suite Madame Blue or Queen Of Spades. Take that as you will; I really like late-'70s Styx, but they're heavily reviled by many proggers, particularly Americans, who've overdosed on the band via FM radio.
Anyway, although singer/keys man Dennis DeYoung has quite specific instrumental credits ('organ, pipe organ, piano, arp, moog'), there's quite clearly Mellotron to be heard on several tracks. The Grove Of Eglantine, containing the subtlest filthy lyrics I've heard since Fairport Convention's The Bonny Black Hare ('Serpent is Rising'? I expect it is...) has a few string chords, ditto the end of Jonas Psalter, while Young Man goes for the flutes and more strings. As Bad As This has more string use, but blows it completely with its ludicrous 'plexiglas toilet' end-section (no, you don't want to know); I'm sure it was screamingly funny at the time, but has dated appalling badly. Finally, the rather silly Krakatoa may have a rising string chord, but it holds far too long, and is more likely to be synth.
Young Man was released as a single, with Unfinished Song on the flip, which is thankfully nothing of the sort, with a lyric about, er, an unfinished song. Previously available on a later version of Man of Miracles and a compilation, it's now most easily found as the only non-album track on the 2-CD The Complete Wooden Nickel Recordings (right), which is exactly what it says on the tin. A piano-led Dennis de Young ballad, it features slabs of 'Tron strings, confirming its position as a Serpent is Rising outtake.
So; rather formative, but not a bad record. If you don't already hate Styx with a passion, go for '77's The Grand Illusion (****½), or the following year's magnificent Pieces of Eight (*****) instead, although (to my knowledge) The Serpent is Rising is the only place you'll hear Styx use a Mellotron. Saying that, now I'm going to have to play all their other early albums again... [n.b. Nope, nothing else].
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Coming Up (1996, 42.34) **/½ |
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| Trash Filmstar Lazy By the Sea She Beautiful Ones Starcrazy Picnic By the Motorway |
The Chemistry Between Us Saturday Night |
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A New Morning (2002, 46.15) ***/T |
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| Positivity Obsessions Lonely Girls Lost In TV Beautiful Loser Streetlife Astrogirl Untitled...Morning |
One Hit to the Body When the Rain Falls You Belong to Me [Untitled] |
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Suede were much-fêted by all and sundry when they appeared with their self-titled debut in 1993, while music press hysteria reached a peak with their follow-up, Dog Man Star, a year later. People started coming out with stuff like 'the new Bowie', with regard to singer Brett Anderson, although, in hindsight, it has to be said that they were sorely mistaken. The heart of the group seemed to be the working relationship between Anderson and guitarist Bernard Butler, who left in the mid-'90s, leaving the band slightly adrift, and it seems their fortunes have never really recovered from the blow.
Coming Up is their third effort, with guitarist Richard Oakes, who does his best to emulate Butler. While I was never a fan of their sound, I have to say that I found this to be the dullest fag-end of Britpop effort imaginable, desperately dreary, with few songs of any real quality, while Anderson's whiny voice destroys any slight vestiges of quality that may've been present originally. Apart from that, it's fine... Picnic By The Motorway features a brief Mellotron string part (presumably) from keys man Neil Codling, but I wouldn't rush out to buy it on that score if I were you.
A New Morning, however, is a vast improvement, even if the critics preferred Coming Up. OK, when I say 'vast', what I actually mean is, er, 'middling', for want of a better word; several of the album's songs still managed to irritate me, but overall, it's less glam and more singer-songwriter, so to speak, with a particularly good Anderson lyric on Lonely Girls. Credited Mellotron on Astrogirl from Alex Lee, with solo strings on the intro, with a repetition of the part later in the song and other string interjections.
Suede are supposed to've used 'Tron on '94's Stay Together EP, so another vicious put-down when I get to hear it. Or maybe not?
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Bully (2001, 39.32) ****/TTT½ |
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| What a Drag Bully Hello Mail Order Girlfriend Motor Mouth Clover Over Gone |
Posterchild for Tragedy Waiting After All |
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Another excellent Jim Rigberg review, ladies'n'gents!
Apparently, as with all excellent - and somewhat unique (sort of like the bastard child of Weezer and Queen) - new bands these days, Sugarbomb managed to last long enough to issue only one full-length release, 2001's Bully. I suppose a potential silver lining exists - vocalist/keyboard man Les Farrington, on the one hand, and vocalist/guitarist David Harville, on the other, are now free to form two good bands. Unfortunately, given the lack of commercial success of Sugarbomb and the prospects these days for any act that doesn't need to rely on those two Swedish guys that supply the tripe for the Justin Aguileras of the world, it would not surprise me in the least if these talented gentlemen blew off music for lucrative careers in web-design, real estate sales, or catering.
Anyway, Bully really is a power-pop gem. Reviews of the CD included comparisons and references to Todd Rundgren, Cheap Trick, XTC, the Beatles, Smashing Pumpkins, Jellyfish, and - of course - Queen, a stated favorite of Mr. Farrington's. Sugarbomb's music echoes all of these bands and, at the same time, carries plenty of complementary modern production finishes, punk energy à la Supergrass, and great, great hooks. Several songs - What A Drag, Bully, Hello, - are radio-ready (but in a good way); it's hard to believe that this CD (which was released on RCA) didn't do a whole lot better. I can't profess to know all the facts, but I suspect that the usual factors (ahem, abandonment of record company financial and advertising support) contributed to the outcome.
Not much Mellotron on the opening track, What A Drag - just some string washes here and there. Mail Order Girlfiend and Motor Mouth, on the other hand, are stuffed with 'Tron. Mail Order Girlfriend sounds like Queen channeling some boy-band (but, I promise, it does not suck) with plenty of creepy-carnival sounding 'Tron and organ figures. However, the 'Tron centerpiece - and the reason an 11-track CD with 'Tron on only four tracks still merits a TTT½ rating - is Posterchild For Tragedy. The verse, chorus, and outro of this piano-based track boast three distinct melodies that would make Paul McCartney proud. The 'Tron strings are up front, come in on the first chorus and, after the second chorus, don't leave. Most importantly, there is that rarest of rarities, a 'Tron solo!
Equally impressive is the 'Tron-less closer After All, the best Queen song not written or performed by Queen. In fact - I hate saying this - the melody of After All is better than most anything Queen ever came up with.
Five of the songs on Bully were apparently re-mastered/re-engineered/re-recorded tunes that appeared on an EP Sugarbomb released in 1999 or 2000. I've not heard the original versions. I have heard a great acoustic version of Killer Queen they performed which is definitely worth down-loading if you can find it. At any rate, if you like any kind of intricate pop music, Bully is a must-buy. Please, Les and Dave - if you are reading this - either get back together or form your two new bands and get us some new stuff!
| Jim Rigberg |
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Street Faërie (1999, 59.19) ***/T |
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| Revelation Sunshine Miss Moon Still Heart Deliciously Down Mean Sleep Life Goes on Fall Angry Boy |
Sweet Pain Smooth My Heart Naheo Soul Sister Curious White Boy |
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Cree Summer (Francks) is an actress, mainly known for voicing animated characters, although she's had a fair few 'regular' roles, too. After an unreleased 1993 album, it seems Street Faërie is her only proper release, falling somewhere between R&B, soul and rock, which isn't exactly surprising when you consider it was produced by her friend Lenny Kravitz, whose music is best described as falling somewhere between R&B, soul... you get the picture. As with most of his production efforts, Kravitz is the chief musician on the album, although he seems to have reined in his compositional talents this time round, with a mere single co-writing credit.
Kravitz plays Mellotron on four songs, which is rather more than he manages on his own albums, with rather murky strings on opener Revelation Sunshine and more of the same on Life Goes On. He's credited with 'Mellotron voices' on Smooth My Heart, but if it didn't say, you probably wouldn't know that the faint backing 'aahs' on the track were 'Tron, while Soul Sister has 'Mellotron orchestra', which sounds like it might be a couple of string sounds overdubbed. Overall, very little 'Tron, in true Kravitz style. Why does he bother?
Street Faërie apparently didn't sell very well; maybe it fell between too many stools? It's too laid-back and acoustic to really appeal to the R&B crowd, too rock for the soul fans, too soul... It isn't a bad record, but doesn't really stand out in any noticeable way, and it seems the record-buying public agreed. Ironically, it's immeasurably better than anything by the likes of the horrendous Mariah Carey, or any number of other multi-million-selling 'artistes'; not unoriginal enough? Wouldn't surprise me. Anyway, not worth it on the 'Tron front, despite four credited tracks, and most readers of this site really aren't going to like the music, though I expect you'd worked that one out for yourselves by now.
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Technostalgia (2004, 52.24) ****/TTTT |
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| Angels in the Sky In Love With Sundae Frankie & Tronny Stuff The Brummagem Fly When Beechleaves are Falling Great Big Homburg Hats |
Smaller Fedora Arabian Flights Balky Mule A Different Tide |
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British Summer Time (2008, 60.18) ***½/TT½ |
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| Good People Pies The Voder Honey Bee The Doddler Flight Four India Let's Go to Germany London to Shanghai via Chipping Norton |
Circles My New Neighbours Holiday Magic Oh Roger Rum |
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You know when you hear a piece of music and it effortlessly invokes a national or regional characteristic? Oompah bands are forever Bavarian, skirling gypsy violins transport one to Hungary in the blink of an eye, a samba lands you on Copacabana beach; you get the idea. Well, Sundae Club are British. Not a 'rolling green hills and Jane Austen' type of Britishness, more the 'wet bank holiday at Skegness' kind, with the whole family stuffed into your dad's Hillman Hunter, eating fish-paste sandwiches while watching the rain, and hoping your little sister doesn't throw up on the way back to the B&B. But if you think this is starting to sound a little negative, think again...
Technostalgia is a celebration of growing up in the '60s and '70s in Britain, with everything that implies; I keep being reminded of the interval music in the local Odeon, with the cheesy, badly-made adverts for local boutiques and Indian restaurants, and the ubiquitous wobbly Hammond they invariably used as a soundtrack. Nostalgia is the key element here, simultaneously with and without irony; the beautifully-designed CD digipack opens out to reveal the dashboard of an unidentified '70s British car (maybe that Hillman Hunter?) in loving detail, the icing on the cake being the pile of Ladybird books in the glove compartment, the bottom one of which is titled, "How it works: the Mellotron". If you're reading this with non-British bemusement, I apologise; I didn't make the album or design its sleeve, but I'm glad someone did.
I haven't even tried to describe the music yet... Easier said than done, to be honest; think 'British film samples mixed with '60s easy listening over a faint techno beat', or 'weird Mellotron riffs in a chill-out room with extra added diva'. I dunno - it doesn't sound like anything else, which is entirely in its favour, but it may also be too eclectic for the average listener, which will somewhat restrict its audience. Do they care? Shouldn't think so; Technostalgia has all the hallmarks of an album made for the amusement of its creators, although I doubt if they'd complain if it suddenly took off. Some tracks catch my ear more than others, but that's hardly surprising, with the variety on offer here. I can't really warm to the girly warblings on three of the tracks, and the vocal samples (of the title) in When Beechleaves Are Falling got on my nerves after a while, but the spoken-word samples in The Brummagem Fly and Great Big Homburg Hats are spot-on (no, I didn't spot their sources), and all the instrumental work is excellent.
Sundae Club are Dr. C.D. Mille on 'composition, production, Theremin, cello, keyboards, loops, percussion, tools', and the ingeniously-named Hamstall Ridware (haven't I seen that name on my phone bill?) on 'composition, Mellotron, keyboards, percussion, tapes and wireless', and I think it's fair to say that they are both absolutely barking mad - in the nicest possible way, of course. Mille's contribution to their sound is described on their website as 'mainly techno', while Ridware's is 'mainly nostalgic', with a full equipment list on the CD sleeve, which informs us that not only do they own an M400 (I knew that, thanks), but a Bentley Rhythm Ace (see: Arthur Brown's wondrous Journey album), a Rhodes and a Wurly, and a bloody DX7. Oh, and a Theremin, that looms up out of the sonic morass here and there. Almost too many 'Tron highlights to name: the 8-choir that opens the album? the flute solo in Angels In The Sky? The MkI (yes, I) rhythms on Frankie & Tronny (actually recorded onto MiniDisc and imported from there, but it still counts)? I'm sure I've missed some more subtle 'Tron parts, but I couldn't hear a single track with nothing at all, though I'm sure I'll be corrected if I'm wrong (ah, correction: The English Vice).
It's taken the Sundae chaps four years to follow Technostalgia, with British Summer Time appearing as a download in 2008, preparatory to a full CD release, apparently. Opener Good People fools the listener into thinking they're going to get more of the same, although it has more of a mainstream 'full band' vibe about it. Pies sounds like some cockney geezer rapping over an Ian Dury outtake, giving the impression of a lite funk rewrite of Blur's Parklife, while Honey Bee goes completely overground, with a mainstream male vocal rather strongly resembling Jeff Lynne's warblings with ELO. You know, you can take this nostalgia thing too far, chaps... The Doddler's plethora of samples sounds more like what we've come to expect from the Clubsters, as does Let's Go To Germany, although the latter is a little repetitive. Circles is another mainstream pop song, while the last few tracks are more typical. What's with the guitar solos, though?
Far less obvious Mellotron than last time round, although a typical string part on Good People might initially make you think otherwise. Strings (moving strings?) and cellos on Pies, a lovely flute part on The Voder and distant, phased choirs on Flight Four India keep things going, but several tracks feature no obvious 'Tron at all, which is, of course, the band's prerogative. Strings on London To Shanghai Via Chipping Norton and faint, effected choirs here and there, but overall, well down on the 'Tron front.
Technostalgia: wow, what an album! It certainly isn't yer run of the mill effort, and it's a million miles away from my more typical listening, but isn't that a good thing? Completely bonkers, rather wonderful, and more Mellotron than you can shake the proverbial stick at. Of course, you don't have to be British and Of A Certain Age to really appreciate this, but it probably helps. Whatever. Buy this album. British Summer Time is a very different record, but its charms may become more apparent if I find the time to give it repeated plays. Not bad, but not great.
