|
Leeds' Sky Larkin have got to be one of the least Yorkshire-sounding
bands around at the moment. Coming across more like a band to be found at
the spot where Riot Grrrl and US College Rock intersect with female-fronted
Britpop, their evocation of the sound of different decades (the '80s and '90s)
and different (American) shores is a tonic for these late noughties, or "the
decade that is has not yet been named", as they would have it, on Octopus.
In spirit, this is very much a positive album. As you get to know
it better, it gradually emerges as one of those records that somehow just
gives you a little lift when the chords and "Ah-ah ahhh"s of opener Fossil
Eye start crashing through your speakers, headphones etc. Katie Harkin's
vocal - hovering somewhere between Juliana Hatfield or Kim Deal's sweetness
and Justine Frichmann's attitude - combines with a matching abrasive yet
sweet guitar setting, and tunes that can often even outstay their welcome
(welcome though they indeed are) by taking root, earworm-style, in your
head.
Standouts include the perky Pica, with its jaunty rhythm and optimistic
lyrics about "eating all this coal cos I'm trying to make a diamond";
Antibodies - curiously reminiscent of a great lost, female-fronted Sebadoh
track, particularly the pleasingly sibilant "Sentiment stretched over
sediment and soil" refrain; Matador's enjoyable lilt and jangle. Keepsakes
has a nicely dark theme, with creepy references to body disposal ("Gonna put
you in bottles and jars / And keep the bigger bits in the boot of the car")
which manages to sound both tongue-in-cheek and still slightly unsettling at
once.
Less successful tracks, perhaps, include Octopus, which edges just
slightly too close to the bombastic; Somersault and One Of Two - both of
which I found a little dull and unmemorable, and the latter of which was
also a little under-inspiring lyrically, with repeated lines like "you go
first, no you go, no you go" giving the impression that they were just there
to fill space.
It's also a shame that they bothered
putting the hidden track at the end. As is often the case with such
efforts, this quick instrumental doodle isn't really worth the dead-air
wait, and can happily be skipped without much overall loss to the record.
Mostly, however, this is an album over which one becomes
fond the more one listens to it. Its successful evocation of
some pleasant stuff from past decades, its overall sunny-natured feel and
its fine tune-smithery all combine to make it a collection of songs that is
easy to recommend.
Comments
|
 |
|
ALBUM:
more 