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I normally dismiss male solo artists out of hand as inevitably
introspective nonsense. Worryingly, Jim Noir is as solo as it gets - he
plays every damn instrument on this album a la J. Mascis - but what
he's come up with on Tower Of Love, his debut album, is just utterly
divine. So there goes my theory.
Hailing from Manchester, a city most recently associated with
hedonism and new-lad posturing, Noir's music is instead delicate, childlike
and luscious. Having said that, despite the computerised warbles, rich
Brian Wilson-inspired soundscapes and Sgt. Pepper harmonies, you
could still pinpoint the lad's origins; for a start, the breathy Manc
accent is a constant charming feature, whilst the lyrics suggest a
firmly northern upbringing.
This latter point is best illustrated by the two singles already
released on earlier EPs, from which this album is largely compiled. First
up is My Patch, which is a shoe-in for my single of the year. In
contrast to the rest of the album, which is brimming with understated
delicacy, My Patch skips along to a quirky, arresting beat that would make a
statue smile. "If you ever step on my patch, I'll bring you down" is
Jim's distinctly northern playground taunt, before dissolving into
ethereal Beach Boys swirls of sound, only for a final refrain to remind us how
damn good it all is.
Eenie Meanie contains more threats to the unwary:
"if you don't give my football back, I'm gonna get my dad on you" - and
rightly so. Musically, its psychedelic rock style could be carbon-dated
to September 1966,a good thing if done well as Bees fans can
testify, and boy is it done well here.
Jim's favourite chord is C, so much so he wrote a song about it: In
The Key Of C, presumably written in the key of C. "I want to be in the
key of C, it's easier to play it" he goes, another example of the
endearing everyday humanity of his work. So effective is his common touch
that moments of true sorrow such as the mournful lost-love lament of
Quiet Man are rendered all the more poignant.
Elsewhere you've got more beautiful, uplifting, sweet music than you
could ever require. None better perhaps than Computer Song - Noir's ode
to his trusty laptop that clearly plays such a key part in his art. But
it's not all complimentary:"Every time I try to make a silly little
song, my efforts are all wasted 'cause machinery goes wrong." What treats
have been lost forever thanks to Jim's lost sectors? The mind boggles.
Thankfully Computer Song and the rest of Tower Of Love survived, and the
world is certainly a far better place for it.
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