Song, by Toad

When Russell first got in touch I must confess my initial thought was ‘Team what??’ In typically tactless fashion I queried him on this and got the following response:

I do get some constructive criticism about the name, I must admit, but I also get an equal amount of compliments about it and I also feel close to it and think it sits with the music so I don’t think I’m going to change it. After a while a name just becomes something which means the music anyway so I can put up with a little stick if needs be I think. I think its a grower… at least I hope it is, let me know if you ever come round.

…which is about as good an answer as I can imagine to some hypocrite who named his site after a slippery green amphibian. ‘Constructive criticism’ also reads nicely as a just everso subtle ‘just fuck off’, which I think is entirely fair.

Apart from bitch-slapping the Impertinent Toad he also does music, of course, which is why we’re all here. The first two songs he sent me were his poppiest – a sort of Belle & Sebastian meets Camera Obscura or Badly Drawn Boy with some Summery rhythms and perky handclaps (actually, I don’t think there are any handclaps, but it sounds like there are). They have a sort of 60s/70s hippy side to them which I rather like as well, which is faintly reminiscent of Sufjan Stevens.

I also asked him to send me a couple of the ‘darker’ songs he’d mentioned and they give a nice depth to the Turnip canon. Spider & the Fly is one of these – very 70s hippy in some ways, although quite magical at the same time – and although it’s a demo the song still comes through well if you ask me. I must admit that on first listen it all sounded a bit too nice to me, but it bears up very well indeed to repeated listens and after a few weeks of having the songs knocking around a few playlists I have to say I really like them now.

Team Turnip have some dates pencilled in for London in August with the full 5-piece line-up, so keep an eye on their MySpace and get down to see them if you can.

Team Turnip – Photos of the Staff[audio http://www.matthewjamesyoung.com/sbt/TeamTurnip-PhotosoftheStaff.mp3]
Team Turnip – Wendy House[audio http://www.matthewjamesyoung.com/sbt/TeamTurnip-WendyHouse.mp3]
Team Turnip – Spider & the Fly[audio http://www.matthewjamesyoung.com/sbt/TeamTurnip-SpiderandtheFly.mp3]