ALBUM REVIEWS
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ALBUM REVIEWS |
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Chris Bathgate
A CORK TALE WAKE TANGLED UP! 22.1.08 @www.vanguard-online.co.uk
I can’t help it. I’m a sucker for the folky singer-songwriter sound. Just one voice and a guitar, to me, is perfection. A drumless wonder. And Chris Bathgate, with “A Cork Tale Wake”, epitomises all that is right about the genre. It’s a sound I grew up with: haunting, melodic, yet oh so personal. And he uses it to great effect across the album, most noticeably opening track “Serpentine”, where he is a voice and guitar, exposed for all to see and allow to perform, the Fairport Convention-like “Every Wall You Own”, with its variety of stringed instruments building to a crescendo, and “Cold Fusion (Snakes)”, which sounds like it’s been recorded in a single take, onto a cassette in his bedroom. The musical sound on “Smiles Like A Fist” is very Semisonic, bringing directly to mind the excellent “Closing Time” from their debut album. But Bathgate’s voice does not want it to be that easy. For some bizarre reason, through the gruff guitar and jazz trumpet, it takes on the character of Ian Ball, lead singer of greatly overlooked Indie stalwarts Gomez. The track list on this album has been cleverly chosen to avoid getting stuck in a rut. After a stripped bare, soulful song, there will be a fuller, bouncier track. Some are unique and may well set the style of Chris Bathgate for the future, while others have more reminiscent sounds. “Cold Press Rail” is magnificent in its devious character, lulling the listener into a false sense of security, then bursting into life and grabbing the attention, while “Restless” is Bathgate’s Brendan Benson moment, drums and all, an intelligent tweak to the ever-changing sound. There isn’t a single track I dislike on this album. Although tracks don’t always appear in logical steps, it is clear that this is intentional, and that the artist is trying to prevent the music from washing over you. Very much one for folkies, and worth listening to time and again. www.acorktalewake.com |
