The Mummers – Tell to Tale (Part One)
Let’s get the crap out of the way first, shall we. At its worst, this album is merely bland – a pastiche of work that Bjork did almost ten years ago. That, just occasionally, is the territory which The Mummers flirt with on Tell to Tale.
That sounds horrible, but if you don’t get into this album then that is what you will probably hear, I would have thought. Personally, though, I think it’s just a bit brilliant. Nicole Atkins has already test-driven the drama queen off broadway on drugs in a dive bar aesthetic this year, with great success. This is a little more Alice in Wonderland than that, but the preposterous, romantic grandeur is similar.
The sound is quite odd actually. It really reminds me of that mid-nineties period I alluded to earlier. It’s not just Bjork, there are elements of Saint Etienne and Dubstar to be heard – a lot of that high, fragile female vocal that was very popular at that point. When The Mummers calm it all down and explore the mistier side of their repertoire they even dance briefly into The Real Tuesday Weld territory, albeit without the dusty vinyl crackles Mr. Coates so loves.
I wouldn’t leap up and down and declare that every last moment on this album is a giddy success, but there are some absolute gems to be found here. When it really clicks it is exuberantly fun to listen to, and that happens a lot. There are a couple where they don’t quite unshackle the magic and the song never quite gets going, but for the most part this is great stuff.
The Mummers – Wonderland
The Mummers – Nightbus
Not bad… I could imagine putting it on after Fairground Attraction has finished playing and there’s still a glass of wine left in the bottle.
‘Wonderland’ doesn’t seem to play though?
Whoops, I’d completely fudged the links. Fixed now. It’s a great song, so make sure you have a listen.
I follow your blog via Google Reader. Lately, when I try to download samples, I’m redirected to a page that grumbles about leachers and linkers and the like. I imagine you’ve got something looking at the Referrer URI and saying “hey, he didn’t come from my sebsite to download this song”. Which is cool, but it doesn’t really work with RSS readers very well. Could you please fix it so that I can download directly from Google Reader like I used to?
Also, the first half of your NKOTB article had me so freaked out that I almost downloaded and listened to their music. I mean, it could happen; a boy band might some day rise above the utterly banal. Pigs might also fly, I suppose.
You beat me to this one – I only discovered it last night and have already played it 4 times as well as booking up to see them next Tuesday night. The first few tracks are exhilarating but it doesn’t quite sustain it to reach “classic” status.