Reviews roundup – Louise Lemón ~ Louise Patricia Crane ~ Exess ~ Sideburns
LOUISE LEMÓN
Devil
Icons Creating Evil Art
I always worry about records like this. See, Ms Lemon made my favourite record of 2019. ‘A Broken Heart Is An Open Heart’ made me feel things I really didn’t want to feel. So when she announced her new release I immediately started fretting. The danger of it not being any good and thus tainting what went before. It’s number 327 on the list of reasons I drink.
Here it is and (sigh of relief) it’s very good.
She said, prior to release, that “After making my last record, which was very produced, I wanted to head to the studio and record it straight as it sounds”. Which does make you wonder why so much production went in to the last record when you can go more intimate and raw but still deliver such nuanced music. The first two tracks on this EP could easily have sat on her last LP but when “Taurus Woman” arrives you get a sense of what she was talking about. It is delicate and smouldering with her vocals just soaring over the top. It’s my favourite.
Although “Bathe In Gold” runs it a close second with the delicate piano runs almost set against the vocal. The closing “All My Tears” is almost a template for what death gospel is supposed to be like. Anthemic, uplifting but resolutely sad.
A magnificent creation and one you should be buying immediately. There’s a limited 12″ vinyl run so grab that while it’s out there.
https://louiselemon.bandcamp.com
LOUISE PATRICIA CRANE
Deep Blue
Peculiar Doll Records
Off to Northern Ireland now for the debut album from Louise Patricia Crane.
It’s that long ago since I reviewed The Eden House that said review actually got printed up in a magazine and posted out to people. If you are unfamiliar with this concept ask yer Da. Or mammy. ‘Smoke & Mirror’ that was, long before Ms Crane arrived on the scene. She turned up for ‘Songs for the Broken Ones’ and has now released this solo album.
It’s certainly interesting and diverse. Oh, and very good. I probably should have led with that as “interesting” often means shite. But not this time around.
It’s a record that draws on a lot of things. Yes, there is a lot of gothic overtones, as if All About Eve had decided to go a bit prog rock. But, equally, there are moments when it goes a bit Cranes meets Slowdive. The single, “Deity” is a prime example of that.
Luckily, it’s all tied together by the tremendous voice of Ms Crane and when she decides to go a bit folk/prog I do get a wee bit moist. “Snake Oil” did that. She’s also managed to pull in some big names to flesh out the sound with appearances from the likes of
Jakko Jakszyk (King Crimson), double bass guru Danny Thompson (Kate Bush/Peter Gabriel) and Ian Anderson from Jethro Tull who contributes flute to ”Snake Oil” and ”Ophelia”. Just for contrast Scott Reeder from stoner legends Kyuss also pops in.
But regardless of who plays what it’s the songs that impress the most. They’re really impressive and when all the elements join together it makes for a remarkable sound. Give “Painted World” s spin and tell me it’s not one of the finest songs you’ve heard this year.
A ridiculously impressive debut that is also out on lovely vinyl.
https://louisepatriciacrane.bandcamp.com
EXESS
Deus Ex Machina
Fastball
Have you been waiting for a metal tinged cover of “Sleeping Satellite” by Tasmin Archer? If you have, then you’re luck’s in as Swiss band Exess have provided just that.
Mind you by the time you get there you’ve been through a lot of twists and turns as despite the metal tag Exess like to range wide and far across that particular spectrum.
Yes, they’ve got plenty of hard riffs but then in places they decide to go a bit proggy. Most of the songs have adventurous arrangements which leave you wondering where you’re going to end up next. Which, considering this is their debut album, is very impressive.
Vocalist Celine Bart is also responsible for most of the songs and she’s as likely to head down a goth route as anything else. There’s a darkness to songs like “Chrysalis” and “Bittersweet Lullaby” and I’m more drawn to the more introspective and subdued material. The rest of the band do a grand job of fleshing out the material and there is a lot of promise here.
Going from alternative to modern meal to prog metal may be a bit much for the casual listener but the more adventurous of you will find a lot of things here to interest you.
https://www.facebook.com/Exessband/
SIDEBüRNS
Too Loud!
Dr Music
Not to be confused with Swedish melodic doom Sideburn or (more likely) the AC/DC influenced Swiss rock band Sideburn, this is Sideburn with an umlaut and an S. SIDEBüRNS!
A German trio who can trace their roots back to 2002 they’ve been through a lot of changes before ending up in their current trio format. And, to be honest, if you were called Ralf Sideburn, Katja BAroneSS or Ronny G Hämmer your career options are fairly limited. Barber, dominatrix, blacksmith. Or you can be in a Motörhead influenced, biker rock band.
That was what they chose and even if it’s probably a less steady job than their options they’ve made a fair fist of making an almighty racket. To their credit, it’s not just Motörhead. They’ve got AC/DC and Rose Tattoo influences as well. A lot of what they do is punch you in the face rock and roll but when they get their swagger on then it makes for mighty fine sound.
The title track is the best example of that when they go all Supersuckers and Mr Sideburns comes close to singing. And it’s a sad tale as well. Elsewhere, the standout tracks are probably “Hit You Like A Tank” and “Rock ‘n’ Roll Apocalypse”, the title of which should tell you exactly what they sound like. And they do. I love this sort of thing as it’s the music I grew up on. Post the apocalypse (!) you could do a lot worse than get yourself over to Germany and have a fine night getting beered up to this lot in a dive bar. They play both kinds of music. Rock and Roll.
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St Columba’s Hospice Tribute Fund for Linda Hamilton
http://linda.hamilton.muchloved.com/
The Rocker - The Artist Formerly Known As Zeitgeist. TAFKAZ 
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