Yellowjack - Godot Woz Ere (Smoking Ant Records)
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| Yellowjack - Godot Woz Ere |
Any album that features two men
in shabby top hats sitting in the gutter as the cover art will immediately peak
my interest. Then reveal that this album has been made by three, how shall I
say, aging gents in a draughty old garage with basic equipment and the last
dregs of dwindling passion and my interest is at excited spaniel levels. The
album starts off with 'We're Back' which is akin to a Blur tune from their
early days or a more melodic Clash before the gentle indie country twang of
'Half-Life'. 'You Can't Have It' is a proper, Britpop anthem with elements of
Dodgy, Menswear and Me Me Me while 'Everyone Likes This' is a dour, acoustic
ballad about the demons of modern society and online existence. This is thoroughly
English indie-rock in the mould of so many greats that have gone before and
'Join The Queue' is no exception as it channels the likes of the Jam and Ian
Dury.
Starting a song with the lines
"Wheels go round except when they don't, A wicket keeper keeps a
wicket" should signal that something has become a little unhinged in the
mind of the band but then the song is called 'It's Time I Went Mad Again' so
what did you expect? 'Whatever Happened To Philip Ford?' is a lo-fi piece of
indie fun that sounds like Teenage Fanclub and the Super Furry Animals jamming
just for the fun of it while 'Next' wins the award for best lyrics on the album
purely on the basis of getting the word 'frottage' in to a song which is
essentially a musical version of a Carry On film. If there were any doubts that
this is the sound of restless suburbia then the Paul Weller meets the Specials
with a smidge of Billy Bragg skank of 'Gnomes Of Bromley' should convince you,
even before the Wurzels style break down. Seriously.
As the album winds down to a
close, 'Going Slowhere' provides a gentle, train ride of a song with a bit of
light mandolin and the final track, 'Godot Woz Ere' is a doomy, punkish song
with a real sense of hopelessness which is a great way to end an album. Let's
face it, these guys are never going to sell millions of records or sell out any
big venues (largely because they never gig) but they are proving that the
chance to record an album with your mates in your garage is never beyond you.
And neither is sitting in the gutter wearing a top hat.
More information: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Yellowjack/556886571091970?fref=ts
Listen/Download Here: http://bisonics.bandcamp.com/album/godot-woz-ere