|
|
|
CD Review |
|
 |
|
Presents For Sally - Catch Your Fall
|
|
|
| |
|
Review by Paul
Towler |
|
|
|
The term 'Lo-fi' is banded around all-too-readily these days by
bands looking to add some instant kudos to their CV. There are even
many major label artists, with no shortage of premium studio time at
their disposal, who would like us to believe their well funded
offerings are 'lo-fi', simply for the sake of extra credibility.
It's a bit like deliberately painting a crap picture when you have
talent for better things |
|
|
|
|
'Lo-fi' isn't just about how minimally something has been recorded -
it's a state of mind, a stream of consciousness that can be traced
back to several pivotal milestones in rock history - notably The
Velvet Underground's eponymous third album (1969), The Jesus & Mary
Chain's 'Psychocandy' (1985) and Pavement's poorly produced yet
critically acclaimed debut 'Slanted and Enchanted' (1991) - the
latter, an album that arrived from America as a much welcomed
antidote to Britain's ailing fey jangle pop. As we can see from the
broad time-lines quoted above, lo-fi is not confined to any specific
genre, place or time, but is a universal art-form that transcends
the fickle life-span of fashionability |
|
Local three-piece Presents For Sally, I'm glad to say, deserve the
'lo-fi' seal of distinction their press release suggests. Here's a
band that wears their influences on their sleeve - not through lack
of originality, but I dare say, through pride. Their fuzzy indie-noir
immediately brings to mind shoegaze bands from the '90's such as
Ride, Galaxie 500 and FUXA - bands who were bridging the gap between
post-Smiths structured pop and dreamy drone-rock. |
 |
|
This two track CDR, the band's debut release, opens with 'Catch Your
Fall' , a slow-paced march of warm, fuzzy guitars pierced by a lone,
shimmering tambourine placed high in the mix (I told you about that
Velvet's album earlier, didn't I?). Second up, 'Smooch' opens with a
more lightweight delivery, hinged on a sparse synth-drum before
towering guitars bring things to a climactic close |
|
|
If you're over a certain age, there's nothing
here you won't have heard before - even the cover art with it's
cropped portraiture and lower-case sans-serif font is a bit too
close to the well-thumbed eighties do-it-yourself-indie rulebook for
comfort. However, again, I suspect this is a calculated homage to
influences past rather than a lack of inspiration. |
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
