THIS WEEK’S NEW ALBUMS REVIEWED | FEATURE
ACTION BRONSON
Only For Dolphins (Loma Vista)
While most seem to be having a very sombre 2020, Action Bronson is living his best life – losing lots of weight, featuring alongside Robert De Niro and Al Pacino onscreen, and now releasing his latest wonderful rap album, one claiming to be dolphin-inspired no less.
Sporting a classic 80s-styled underscore with plenty of sax thrown in, Action Bronson doesn’t let up. Funny, fitting and ribald lyrics arrive thick and fast throughout (“if you wanna fuck Ernie, ya gotta fuck Bert,” anyone?), with the self-styled “exotic olive oil taster” barely letting up for a second. Jack of all trades, master of… all – this is exemplary feelgood hip-hop.
words JUSTIN EVANS
ANNA VON HAUSSWOLFF
All Thoughts Fly (Southern Lord)
In the course of a 2019 Guardian article justifying his claim that Sunn O))) “are the most influential metal band of the decade”, John Doran argued that the band have created “a numinous, reality-altering antechamber to a different realm”. That description would be equally apt for Anna von Hausswolff’s new LP, not coincidentally released on Sunn O)))’s label Southern Lord.
On paper, All Thoughts Fly sounds minimalist in the extreme: no vocals, no backing instruments – nothing except the Swede [pictured, top] playing a pipe organ in a Gothenburg church. And yet it proves to be a rich, complex and ultimately rewarding listen – one that dumbfounds, terrifies, elates and comforts. Sacro Bosco strives to take flight, straining against the ominous notes that keep it anchored to the earth; Outside The Gate could be A Silver Mt Zion or even Mogwai at their most meditative; and the title track is a surging, twinkling tour de force.
words BEN WOOLHEAD
HEN OGLEDD
Free Humans (Domino)
A first listen to the latest album from Brythonic band Hen Ogledd confirmed what the song titles (The Loch Ness Monster’s Song; Space Golf) foretold: that the quirk-count would be off the charts. But, after repeated listens, what reveals itself through the chintz and chants is a gloriously strange brew of influences and leaping off points. The playschool keyboards and tinny drum machines recalled the eerie work of Brummie legends Pram; Time Party feels like Richard Dawson’s wonky prog take on “Pull up to the Bumper”, whilst Farewell offers vocal interplay and an understated pulse reminiscent of the dearly-missed Electrelane.
After the success of Richard Dawson’s album 2020, many will be coming to Hen Ogledd looking for further angular, bittersweet, state-of-the-nation songs. They may not find a lot of topical stuff here, but they’ll certainly find an unusual, slightly lopsided pop record with its heart very much in the right place.
words ADAM JONES
IDLES
Ultra Mono (Partisan)
There has perhaps never been a more appropriate album to listen to whilst in lockdown, fed up and bored, particularly if you’re angry at the government (who isn’t?). It’s a political and accusatory record full of witty pop culture references, hardly surprising when Idles’ debut performance on Jools Holland was likened to Arctic Monkeys and Kanye West’s first appearances on the show.
The lyrics are as memorable as pop music and will undoubtably be chanted as loud as possible when (fingers crossed) Idles go on tour in 2021. Highlights include the powerful Ne Touche Pas Moi and Model Village, yet my favourite track is The Hymn which builds to an immense crescendo that will make you feel like you could take on the world.
On their third album, Idles just seem to be getting better every time; this is a punk rock epic of an album, best played at maximum volume screaming along at the top of your lungs.
words SARAH BOWDIDGE
THE PRETTY THINGS
Bare As Bone, Bright As Blood (Mad Fish)
The Pretty Things have had a long career making sporadically excellent albums that have flown way under the rock radar of all but their diehard fanbase. Bare As Bone, Bright As Blood, their final release after the death of frontman Phil May, is the most fitting finale imaginable.
This stripped-back acoustic album is another collection of brilliant performances that equal their early classics, S.F. Sorrow and Parachute. But, while being a radical departure from the previous dozen albums of electric, full-band rock, it is also a return to the material of their eponymous 1965 debut. Where The Pretty Things mined the band’s R&B roots, this final bookend goes deeper into the blues and folk roots of the rock music May and guitarist Dick Taylor have made their own for the past 55 years.
Interpretations of Come Into My Kitchen and Black Girl stand up against modern versions, by the likes of Larkin Poe, and covers of Gillian Welch’s The Devil Had A Hold Of Me and Sheryl Crow’s Redemption Day rival the originals. The selection of staring-down-the-barrel-of-mortality material, alongside Taylor’s rough and raw slide playing and May’s now softer and fuller vocal, harks back to Johnny Cash’s American albums – the inclusion of Ain’t No Grave ain’t no coincidence. The title track single is as good as any of the covers and a memorable end to the career of one of rock’s great forgotten bands.
words JOHN-PAUL DAVIES
