Crazy Arm - The Southern Wild (Xtra Mile Recordings)
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| Crazy Arm - The Southern Wild |
Release Date: 23rd September 2013
What do you when your band's line
up is more changeable than a politician's ethics and you're best known for your
blistering anarcho punk live sets? You gather a gaggle of musicians around a
campfire and record an acoustic album dripping in musical, political and
ideological influences from the past, ooh, 200 years or so. Plymouth's finest
sons and daughters, Crazy Arm, are back with album number three which has been
touted as 'the acoustic one' but I'd rather see it as a natural step in the
bands evolution, allowing them to explore a more delicate, thoughtful and
considered approach to music making whilst retaining the raw power and emotion that
has made them so popular thus far.
The album opens with Vicky
Butterfield showing off her soulful side with a lung busting a cappella
rendition of 'Oh Death' which slides effortlessly in to the mournful country'n'western
twang of 'Hell To Pay' which really ought to have featured on the Django
Unchained soundtrack had there been any justice in the world. The gentle
picking and pitch perfect vocal harmonies that welcome in 'Remembrance' feel
distinctly un-Crazy Arm but, fear not, it's not before the acoustic strumming
takes a menacing turn and the lyrics show their true, ideological colours;
"There is a war but only one side has all the anger, has all the motive to
rise and conquer". And then comes the intense Banjo twang of 'Don't Be
Cruel' that transports you back to a rowdy Westcountry tavern where a fierce
wind whips at the door and the horses huddle for warmth but inside stories are
told, reputations are made and a good time is had by one and all. It is Crazy
Arm's ability, nay, courage to cherry pick the best in organic music and ideas from
throughout the centuries whilst still applying their own wax seal that makes
them such a compelling outfit on many levels.
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| Album Launch Party |
Butterfield's soothing vocals are
back on 'Fossils', a lament that has a sense of pleading or begging about it
despite possibly the simplest arrangement on the album as a strummed guitar and
gently plucked Banjo are the only bed for the implored words to lie on. There
is a definite darkness to this album, a sense of foreboding and frustration
runs through the melodies which is pierced only occasionally by the more
uplifting tunes such as 'County Jaws' but even then the urgency of the song
doesn't allow much relief from the intensity. Indeed, the Manzarek-ish organ
onslaught is so unrelenting that it feels a little like trying to run through
shallow water and in to a head wind - you know you're moving forward but you're
not sure how or why. As you might expect from the title, 'The Wild Cats of
Denbury', has an almost medieval melody and you can imagine such tunes ringing
out on a dark winter's night round at Chaucer's place. More to the point I
can't imagine many other bands around these days being brave enough to attempt
such a tune, and none of them would follow it up with the rambunctious folk
punk stomp of 'Roasting River'.
Now, I defy anyone with a soul
not to fall in love 'A Pocket Full Of Gold' within moments. The rich, warm
guitar work accompanied by the brutally honest words of self reflection will
surely chime with most of us. Darren Johns' gravelly yet smooth vocal delivery
is so perfectly raw and honest for this kind of song that it brings to mind the
likes of Billy Bragg (but with more melody) or Elvis Costello (but with more
passion). 'We Don't Go There Anymore' shows off the folky leanings of the
collective and Patrick James Pearson's fiddle playing is as smooth and warming
as a fine dram of whiskey on the first cold day of winter. If there was ever
any doubt of Crazy Arm's roots, the sea shanty-esque vocals of Johns on 'The
Valley Of Weeping' sung over a solitary, sweeping drone could only ever have
ever come from the South Western corner of this island. Album closer, 'Black
Canyon', is wondrously layered and shows how Crazy Arm have grown as musicians.
The thumping Piano in the distance is perfect counterweight to the plucked
guitar of unsung hero Jon Dailey and harmonious vocals that flirt and tease
with each other as the song undulates like the grey sea off the Cornish coast.
The Piano coda from Pearson is, again, dripping in melancholy and regret which
is a hugely brave way to end any album.
For me, this is an intriguing,
challenging and engaging collection of songs that will not only stand the test
of time but which will also compliment the ferocity of the rest of the band's
back catalogue. More importantly though, this album feels like it should be
played in the camp the night before a big battle where many men know they are
preparing to meet their maker or face their destiny; a calm before the storm if
you will. A band like Crazy Arm will always be carrying the fight to the rest
of the world but in this case you feel like they are reflecting the mood of world
and mirroring the fact we should all be preparing to stand up to fight for what
we believe in.
More information: www.facebook.com/thecrazyarm
Live Dates:
17 Sept – The Corner House, Cambridge
(with Sam Russo)
18 Sept – Santiagos, Leeds (w/regional
support)
19 Sept – The Lounge Bar, Warrington
(w/regional support)
21 Sept – The Stanley Arms, Norwich
(w/Crowns)
22 Sept – Fighting Cocks, Kingston
(w/Smith Street Band + Great Cynics)
27 Sept – White Rabbit, Plymouth (w/The
PJP Band + Dammerels + Big Fin)