Review: David Ward - Golden Future Time

You’d have to be a hardened popophobe to find nothing appealing about David Ward’s debut, for the Canuck crooner’s magpie-like musical instincts have resulted in him dabbling in a raft of celebrated styles and mastering many of them. From the sinister fairy-tale waltz of ‘Ghost in the Woods’ and the sparse Portishead-esque canvas of ‘Lost’ (literal trip-hop; listen to that stumbling beat), to the shiny, happy, supercheesed disco of the title track and ‘Fly’s woofer-whuppin’, dirty dancefloor throb, Ward comes over as part indie-introvert, part crotch-grabbing lothario. But ain’t we all. The adhesive to this unlikely assemblage is his opulent soulful vocal, a larynx to conquer all variables, sometimes recalling the ethereal fragility of fellow countryman Partick Watson, sometimes a Pharrell were he ever prone to self-doubt. The flipside to this mash-up is that even the most broad-minded music fan might struggle to find the entire package satisfying – everyone will have their favourites. Ours is the opener, ‘Slowly Through The Night’, whose snaking electro bassline introduces some epic, near proggy guitars and keys, and finds Ward gliding from pained, sweet falsetto to sullen rap. Take a listen below, it may not be representative of the whole album, but you’d be hard pushed to find one track on ‘Golden Future Time’ that is.

Golden Future Time is out now on Golden Future Recordings

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Review: Michael A Grammar – Random Vision EP

Swollen with sonic exploration, Michael A Grammar’s ‘Random Vision’ might be projected through a vaguely baggy, psych-rock prism, but its caution-to-the-wind approach makes for a refreshingly genre-bending whole. Blasting off, the bombastic ‘The Day I Come Alive’ recalls heady Madchester euphoria, its Messianic complex not diminished by the opening ‘I’ve been searching for Jesus’ line, and a massive sky-kissing chorus more exaltation of praise than hooky one-liner. It’s an anthem grounded by a supercool shuffle from a rhythm section who also show funky form over the closing bars of ‘Suzanna’, which unpromisingly kicks off like INXS fronted by an Elvis impersonator, but takes a radical turn when a serrated guitar riff sparks like a jump-lead, hot-wiring the track into life. ‘Upstairs Downstairs’ is heavy-duty psych, evoking a reined-in Tame Impala herded on by another fearsome riff, this one chopped out in a stacatto rush as if the guitarist is clasping powder-flecked plastic rather than a plectrum. Threatening to climax in a cacophony of power chords, instead the tune drops easier than Luis Suarez and fades on a cushion of dreamy arpeggios. This predilection for the unpredictable peaks on the EP’s closing number – ‘The Way You Move’ has a driving root-note intro, suggesting a Doves-style pop epic, before it segues into a kind of grungy bossanova, a Bond theme made all the more surreal by the return of those pub singer vocals; the mumbling melody juxtaposed with spectacular fretwork. Even the extended outro is more enervating than indulgent, evidence of a band enthused by the scope of their dexterity. There’s the occasional dizzy spell in Michael A Grammar’s Random Vision, but the overall expressiveness and excitement of this EP are as clear as day.

Random Vision is released on 27 January on Melodic.

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Review: Turtle - Who Knows EP

Fast gaining a reputation as a rising electronic star, Turtle, aka Jon Cooper, has released his debut EP, 'Who Knows', and it’s an expertly executed medley. Drawing comparisons to the likes of Radiohead and contemporaries Jon Hopkins and SOHN, Turtle has forged his own minimalist, layered landscape here. The title track encompasses stunning synths and a slow beat that builds through a piano crescendo, and is addictive listening. The accompanying video, produced by Simone Smith, captures the dreamy trip-hop nature of the track, with a series of disparate flashing images that gradually connect, creating a haunting nostalgia mimicking Cooper's lyrics. The rest of the EP continues in the same vein, with ‘Compartmentalisation’s more uplifting guitar glitches, and some breathy, manipulated vocals and driving, heavy bass on ‘Opposite of Low’. It’s the first release from new label Beatnik Creative, and these guys are on to something pretty special. And just in time for Christmas, the EP is available on limited edition 12" white vinyl. Festive.

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Review: Benin City – Wha Gwan

Much like the oft-bewildering vagaries of modern life in the metropolis from which the trio hail, London’s Benin City are a mixture of gloss and grit. Their fresh fusion of percussive electro and sparse soul is captured on new single ‘Wha Gwan’, a regretful lament of friendship gone sour, which finds Joshua Idehen’s rapid urban patter flowering into song over the expansive chorus – “We used to start/Fires in the park, you and I” – while, underneath, Theo Buckingham’s fluid rhythms embellish a metronomic pulse that anchors some weighty synth chords. As the track builds, Tom Leaper’s horn riff creeps in almost unnoticed, until its sombre melody becomes the focal point of the coda, and the listener is left wondering whether this is some new take on dubstep, trip hop or even 21st-century jazz, yet never doubting that ‘Wha Gwan’ is a truly original arrival, a new sound of the contemporary capital.

‘Wha Gwan’ is released via Audio Doughnuts on 7 October.

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