METHODS OF MAYHEM – A Public Disservice Announcement

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methodsIn 1999, during his time away from the Mötley Crüe drum stool, Tommy Lee embarked upon a new project, Methods of Mayhem, with rapper TiLo. Their 1999 self-titled album combined dance, rap and a healthy dose of nu-metal and was a world away from any of Lee’s previous work. Featuring a host of guest performers, including Limp Bizkit’s Fred Durst, L’il Kim, Snoop Dog, The Crystal Method and George Clinton, the album’s fusion of styles could be best compared to Limp Bizkit, though the end result was far better than anything Fred Durst and his band of cronies had released by that point. Or, in fact, ever. Naturally, the reviews were mixed, as were the responses from Crüe fans.

A decade later (after various Crüe albums and tours, and a couple of solo releases)
Tommy Lee revived the Methods of Mayhem project. In place of TiLo and a long guest list of famous vocalists, Lee takes on most vocal duties himself. The album isn’t without outside contributions, though, since Tommy Lee had a rather resourceful idea: he asked unknown musicians to submit work to his website – from which he would choose the best bits as the basis for the album’s songs. In addition to the pieces of music selected from over 10,000 submissions, ex-Bone Machine guitarist John Allen III (aka J3) assumes the role as Tommy’s main collaborator. With J3’s 80s rock and glam metal roots, he provides more musical clout and melody than the original pairing of Lee and TiLo, which in turn makes ‘A Public Disservice Announcement’ a surprisingly varied outing – and one which, for the most part, doesn’t sound much like Methods as you remember them on their debut.

The opening track, ‘Drunk Uncle Pete’ would’ve been enough for me to stop listening almost straight away, had I not had faith that the album had to feature at least a few great tracks. Imagine something that sounds like ‘In Too Deep’ by Sum 41 with more electronic fuzziness and a choir of teenagers, and that’d be a close approximation of its evilness. How it made the final tracklisting is a mystery in itself, but to open the album with it is just insane. One of the only “typical” sounding Methods tracks, ‘Fight Song’ (released as the album’s first single) redresses the balance, with its sledgehammer guitar riffs and aggressive vocal (part shouting, part rap influenced – though no actual rap this time around). This has the trademark Methods sound which was slapped across the debut; elements of nu-metal band Snot, P.O.D. and early Powerman 5000 colliding with Tommy Lee’s unrelenting attitude make this impossible to ignore, whether you like it or not. ‘I Really Want You’ hits upon a similar groove, but it much lighter in tone, with Lee delivering a fairly melodic vocal. The electronic parts are among the albums best – each of the musical elements unfussy and suitably crunchy.

‘Time Bomb’ is a track which melds alt-rock and lightweight pop-punk, but does so with plenty of charm. J3’s guitars are fuzzy and the vocals are subject to studio trickery, but for those of you who like your hooks a little more traditional, this should be far more enjoyable than anything Methods have offered you previously. Between the pre-programmed elements and slight distortion, J3’s chorus is like a shining beacon (surely a hit in the hands of any number of made-for-music-television pop-punk outfits); some guitar playing here leans towards the more traditional too, with a (multi-tracked) twin lead solo.

The acoustic guitars overlaid with subtle electric parts as featured on ‘Blame’ provide a huge musical curve-ball for Methods. I expect J3 has had an influence, once again, and particularly so during the track’s slightly Beatle-y moments. Its “modern rock” sound – the kind which became unavoidable on US radio throughout the 00’s – is closer to Lifehouse or The Calling than anything you’d associate with Tommy Lee, but even so, his vocal is strong here and he sounds incredibly comfortable in this musically mature role. With a very gentle verse – a hushed vocal set against an almost mechanical arrangement, ‘Louder’ is another of the album’s stand out numbers. In terms of feeling, again, it shares more in common with the soft end of alternative rock than it does with the angry metal of old school Methods. According to Lee, the song is about those dreams you have where you try and scream but all you hear is silence. In an attempt to recreate the unnatural feeling of this, all the vocals have been put through various effects – not too far short of autotune abuse – but, rather surprisingly, this doesn’t detract from the end result.

Bordering on novelty, ‘Party Instructions’ lumbers around for nearly five minutes in the style of early Daft Punk, its electronic loops not really going anywhere. A heavily treated, spoken vocal delivers the instructions like some kind of motivational speaker. An occasional female vocal in an r ‘n’ b style doesn’t help matters. As such, this is a track you’ll probably skip after two or three plays – which, I suppose is good odds compared to ‘Drunk Uncle Pete’.

‘All I Wanna Do’ marries r ‘n’ b style beats with hard electronica and is certainly this album’s answer to ‘Get Naked’ (the debut’s duet with L’il Kim). None of Tommy’s sweatiness comes anywhere close to Kim’s vulgarity, but he does his best to push the buttons of the anti-misogynists. Also featuring a healthy dose of electronic styles, ‘Back To Before’ screams radio play. Having more in common with a band like The Killers or Head Automatica than Methods of Mayhem, it’s another of the album’s big surprises, matching a danceable electronic arrangement with treated vocals and an alt-pop chorus. ‘Only One’ is a bit of a mish-mash; it has a vocal which on the quiet moments occasionally slips into something resembling ‘So Fine’ by Guns N’ Roses (unintentionally, I’m sure) while its heavier moments feel rather laboured. The guitar style has presence, but aside from slabs of sound, doesn’t really achieve anything. A keyboard part occasionally provides interest among the sludge, but it’s very underused. If anything, most of this could have been tempered by a chorus of some sort.

Those approaching this album as a follow up to the 1999 disc may find themselves disappointed, at least at first. A couple of songs sound like the original Methods – which should please old fans – but in relation to the rest of this album, they certainly feel like lip-service to the past. With its aspects of light and shade, this album has far more in common, perhaps, with parts of Tommy Lee’s solo outing ‘Never a Dull Moment’ than previous Methods recordings. This may have a great deal to do with changing times – after all, if Tommy Lee were to release a carbon copy of the Methods debut, this disc would sound a decade out of date.

October 2010

THE WILDHEARTS – Earth Vs. The Wildhearts

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Back in 1993, I bought a copy of the debut EP ‘Mondo Akimbo A-Go-Go’ by The Wildhearts, a band which bought together the talents of vocalist/guitarist Ginger (previously a member of Newcastle’s premier retro band The Quireboys) , CJ (previously with The Tattooed Love Boys) and Dogs D’Amour drummer Bam Bam. While their EP wasn’t a great opening statement, it showed promise – namely in it’s opening number ‘Nothing Ever Changes But The Shoes’. That spark of gold was enough for the release of their forthcoming full-length album to be met with some excitement.

By the time The Wildhearts re-entered the studio, Bam Bam had returned to the (then recently reformed) Dogs D’Amour and had been replaced in the drum stool by Stidi (who’d played drums in a fledling lineup of The Wildhearts a few years previously), and the resulting demos are allegedly the same recordings released as the finished album.

From the outset, ‘Earth Vs The Wildhearts’ suffers a similar problem to the EP, in that The Wildhearts seem to be unable to settle upon a core sound for their material. The resulting music hovers somewhere between punk, metal and power pop. While it could be argued that the fusion of these styles gave the band a unique sound of their own on the album, its eleven songs can be frustrating and brilliant in equal measure. Ginger is capable of writing a catchy chorus, but those moments of sing-along brilliance are often overshadowed by heavy handed sludginess.

This is something clearly obvious on the opening number ‘Greetings From Shitsville’. A hard rock guitar riff drives the verses in a direction in which the song never quite feels comfortable, until crashing headlong into a brilliant multi-vocalled chorus which could only be described as power pop (albeit an edgy example of that musical subgenre). It sounds for all the world like Ginger had two half finished ideas and then melded those together, hoping for the best. Once you’ve thrown in a heavy chugging guitar riff during the bridge, it means ‘Earth Vs…’ begins with an almost Frankenstein creation that’s lucky it works at all. ‘Everlone’ fares better all round…although the sledgehammer riff during the opening bars doesn’t instantly inspire confidence. When the vocals arrive, The Wildhearts settle for a groove that rests somewhere between hard rock and punk – a sound which dominates most of their best work. The chorus is fairly catchy and the use of backing vocals is great. On the negative side, clocking in at over six minutes, it’s far too long. After the track reaches its natural end, it features a coda containing almost two minutes of guitar-based meandering, followed by a crunchy guitar riff to close. There’s a definite feeling of this being bolted on after someone decided those bits of music were too good to waste.

Released as the first single from the album, ‘TV Tan’ features ringing guitars, a little bit of 80s glam and just enough bounce to keep it going. Like ‘Everlone’ and ‘Shitsville’, the chorus is a solid one, but without its even better pre-chorus, it would never have worked. The pre-chorus is essential in this instance, since the vocal doesn’t really scan on the song’s verses, despite trying its hardest… The pre-chorus is another moment which captures The Wildhearts’ distinctive punk-hard rock fusion perfectly; as with ‘Everlone’, Ginger’s voice sounds best when CJ is on hand to sing a counter harmony, no matter how ragged. When ‘TV Tan’s strongest elements come together in such a way, it becomes the natural single choice.

‘Shame On Me’ has a spiky riff coupled with a decent vocal performance. While the dual vocals highlight The Wildhearts’ sing-along qualities, the guitar work is from a rather more straight-up metal school of playing. Interestingly, between the metallic riffing, the guitar solo has a bluesy edge. It’s a great, but fleeting moment, which once again makes it hard to understand the creative process here: how did the band decide on that particular solo for this song? It almost stops ‘Shame On Me’ in its tracks.

‘Suckerpunch’ has all the subtlety of a juggernaut. Distorted vocals collide with a Motorhead style speed riff, as the band tear through an almost breathless three minutes. Its ferocity is given a little respite during the chorus, which makes good use of gang vocals, but its anger sounds mostly contrived – and the end result presents a not very natural sound for The Wildhearts. A similar argument could be made for ‘Drinking About Life’, which combines a late 80’s Metallica style riff and a bunch of shouting to create something which lacks longevity.

Taking something that sounds like a cross between New York Dolls and mid-70s Rolling Stones, mixing it up with a suitable sneer and a pinch of metal in the guitar solo, ‘Loveshit’ represents a track where the band sound their most at ease. A definite nod to Ginger’s past in the Faces-obsessed Quireboys, it’s a pity The Wildhearts never explored the bar-room rock avenue farther on this album. Unlike a couple of the other more feel-good tracks (‘Everlone’ especially), which were weakened slightly by incorporating too much of a kitchen sink mentality, it’s ‘Loveshit’s simplicity which makes it work. There’s definitely weight in the old argument that sometimes less really is more… A confident trashiness also sits at the heart of ‘Love U Till I Don’t’, with a chorus vocal of shameless ‘la la’s. The trashiness doesn’t last though, since eventually The Wildhearts’ metal tendencies get the better of them, leading to some incredibly unsubtle riffing. While the metal moments are never The Wildhearts’ strongest musical trait, it’s not terrible – and Stid turns in some decent drum fills.

A heartfelt and tuneful vocal lies at the heart of ‘News of the World’ and its chorus is one of the best on ‘Earth Vs…’ In this respect, it captures what was so good about ‘Nothing Ever Changes But The Shoes’. It brings nothing new to the album, but there’s a great deal of pleasure in hearing the vocal arrangement used so well. The chorus/gang vocals aren’t any different from the type previously heard on ‘Everlone’, but it is best remembered that the more time The Wildhearts spend concentrating on this poppier end of their music, it means more time they’re not muddying otherwise great songs by throwing in metal guitar riffs… This number isn’t guilt free in the padding out department though. It could could have been a brilliant (and very commercial) piece of chorus driven hard rock, but manages to completely fall apart near the end, when it decends into workmanlike chugging, followed by a call-and-response vocal section that feels like it has no place here at all.

‘The Miles Away Girl’ is the album’s greatest track, without question. There’s a power pop maturity at play throughout most of the song which could be compared to early 90s Cheap Trick. It really captures the (often lost) potential behind The Wildhearts’ craft. The gang/backing vocals are excellent during a really infectious chorus; all the instruments sound crisp and even the band’s tendency to use a musical motif where it’s unwarranted doesn’t spoil the end result. While a metal section during a bridge seems a little misplaced, this is balanced by a playfulness elsewhere, as The Wildhearts tease with a musical moment not too far removed from late sixties pop. A similar playfulness can also be found during ‘My Baby Is a Headfuck’; a track which incorporates bits of glam metal, pop punk, a reworking of The Beatles’ ‘Day Tripper’ and a raucous guitar solo played by Mick Ronson. Listening to these two songs, it’s easy to spot those moments when the band members really gelled.

With a fluctuating line up, The Wildhearts continued to tour and release albums; however, none gained the praise of their early works. ‘Earth Vs…’ in particular, has become somewhat of a cult album. Even though Kerrang! voted it their best album of 1993, as good as it may be, it’s unfocused at best. Over the years, it’s an album I’ve had a love-hate relationship with…and probably will always continue to do so.

[A 2010 2CD reissue of ‘Earth Vs The Wildhearts’ contains a bonus disc featuring the ‘Mondo Akimbo A-Go-Go’ EP, the four bonus tracks from the ‘Don’t Be Happy…Just Worry’ compilation plus all the non-album b-sides from the ‘TV Tan’ and ‘Shitsville’ singles].

Watch clips from Donington ’94 at the links below:
Suckerpunch
Greetings From Shitsville
Love U ‘Til I Don’t

Watch the complete live at the 1994 Reading Festival, with Devin Townsend on guitar at the links below:
Caffeine Bomb
Everlone
Greetings From Shitsville
Nothing Ever Changes But The Shoes
Suckerpunch
Drinking About Life
Shut Your Fucking Mouth
Liberty Cap
My Baby Is A Headfuck
Love U ‘Til I Don’t

July/October 2010

DEVIN TOWNSEND – Ziltoid The Omniscient

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Despite lacking warmth and almost any real human qualities, Devin Townsend’s ‘Ocean Machine: Biomech’ album is a wondrous piece of work. It has a cold, multi-layered stylishness which holds the listeners’ attention over multiple listens. In some ways, whether you like it or not is immaterial: nobody could deny its style came as a surprise after his previous work with the subtle-as-a-breezeblock Strapping Young Lad.

Over the next few years, Devin continued to release extremely heavy albums with SYL in tandem with a solo career, all with varying degrees of quality. Stylistically, ‘Ziltoid The Omniscient’ probably has most in common with his solo album ‘Physicist’, which although credited as a solo work, featured all the SYL members. It’s a step up from that, though, since ‘Physicist’ didn’t really highlight any of Devin’s progressive styles. Although mostly difficult listening, this album brings together both sides of Devin’s work properly for the first time.

A concept album, named after its central figure, ‘Ziltoid…’ concerns a rather malevolent being’s search for a perfect cup of coffee. If he doesn’t get one in five Earth minutes, everyone will die. Move over blind pinball kid! Move over Broadway spray-paint artist castrated by aliens! We have a new King of Ridiculous Concepts. There’s a huge difference between this and many other bloated concept albums though – Dev isn’t really expecting us to take it seriously.

The album has such density. The rhythm style throughout a bulk of the material makes it more comparable to SYL than anything else, but there’s still a wedge of sound which has much in common with Townsend’s lighter work, even though his progressive styles have been largely pushed aside.

The opening intro features Ziltoid making his request for coffee, coupled with death metal style grunting vocals; ‘By Your Command’ sets the pace for most of the album with heavy double bass drums (which are almost certainly programmed) underlying multi-tracked guitars and multi-tracked, sometimes angry vocals. ‘Ziltoidia Attaxx!!’ takes this approach and pushes it farther; its extra edge and Dev’s vocal style make this easily comparable to later Strapping Young Lad work (y’know, not quite the full on pneumatic road drill of ‘Heavy as a Very Heavy Thing’, but still bloody heavy by most sane people’s standards). On the chorus, the metal style vocals give way to comic falsetto. Within the mass of noise, some of the guitar work is amazing, although very little sounds natural due to Devin’s heavy use of pedals and phasers (I don’t really understand the technical side, so you’ll have to hear it yourselves). The programmed electronic drums towards the closing section are mastered loudly, replicating the sound of Ziltoid’s laser guns attacking Earth (it sounds really stupid when you write it all down, eh? Thanks Devin.)

‘Color Your World’ at first, sounds like SYL at their best, but with extra keyboards and Devin using the vocal style most associated with his ‘Terria’ album. There’s a good musical idea in here, but the pounding and density (there’s that word again, but no others fit the bill as effectively) masks any of the underlying subtleties. The mid section is pure, early SYL – I don’t think I need to elaborate! In a twist, the closing section features the gentlest music the album has to offer. While it has many elements in common with ‘Ocean Machine’, ‘Accelerated Evolution’ and ‘Synchestra’, it makes little impact after the noisy first half. …And even if it did, it would likely be ruined by Ziltoid shouting his name mid way – just in case you’d forgotten what this was all about.

Most of ‘Ziltoid The Omniscient’ follows similar musical patterns to those featured the first couple of tracks. There are a couple of exceptions, however: ‘Solar Winds’, sounds like something from ‘Terria’. It’s not as classic as any of that though, since Dev pushes his voice into slightly theatrical territory, sounding like someone putting on an amusing ‘heavy rock’ voice, although I’m not sure this element is supposed to be comical. I’d like to tell you the slow, chugging riffs make up for that…but they don’t.

‘Hyperdrive’ is classic. It’s nowhere near as claustrophobic as most of ‘ZTO’. It sounds like an odd cousin to some of ‘Ocean Machine’ and naturally, that pleases me. Devin’s vocals – again multi-tracked and treated – are much gentler here than the rest of the album. ‘The Greys’ is the best song here, without question. It’s one of those moments (and most of Devin’s solo albums feature one), where he taps into his most melodic side: that shining moment that’s not prog metal as such; certainly not AOR and not quite pomp. It’s closest to ‘Life’ (from ‘Ocean Machine’) and ‘Slow Me Down’ (from ‘Accelerated Evolution’). It’s still heavier than those songs, though – and its melodies are buried under a fair amount of sludge – so don’t get too excited. For those of you who came looking for ‘Ocean Machine’ and ‘Synchestra’ style material, this track will please you too. ‘N9’ is also lighter, but the amount of layers and overdubs used makes hard listening.

If you’re a fan of Devin’s ‘Ocean Machine’ or ‘Synchestra’ styles, then on the whole, ‘Ziltoid The Omniscient’ likely won’t do it for you. If you enjoy Devin’s angry, more extreme metal tendencies, strap yourselves in. It’s brash, it’s stupid…and most importantly, it’s unmistakably Devin. Pomposity and aggression coupled with a sense of humour sets this apart from anything Townsend has attempted previously – the only worry is that the silly concept gives it a shorter shelf life than some of his more serious works.

Watch Ziltoid’s transmissions:
Part 1 here
Part 2 here
Part 3 here
Part 4 here

January 2010

HUEY LEWIS AND THE NEWS – Soulsville

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This album of soul covers, containing material originally associated with the classic Stax label, represents the first new recorded works by Huey Lewis and The News since 2001’s ‘Plan B’ album. Interestingly, its UK release came during the same month as the re-release of ‘Back To The Future’ at the cinema – part of me thinks this may not have been a coincidence.

If you take a closer look at Huey Lewis and The News’s back catalogue, amongst the good-time pop-rock belters, you’ll find plenty classic soul music influences – not least of all on tracks like ‘Doing It All For My Baby’, ‘Hope You Love Me Like You Say You Do’ and the monster hit ‘Stuck With You’ – so the idea of a soul covers album from these guys feels very natural. With Lewis’s voice as great as it ever was (the dictionary definition of professional performer) there was no doubt as to whether they could pull this off. There aren’t any moments during ‘Soulville’s fourteen cuts where you’d question their choice of song, but naturally, some covers are better suited to The News than others.

The journey through the band’s soul influences begins with a run through of the Wilson Pickett classic ‘Don’t Fight It (Feel It)’. The sound is slightly smoother than that of Pickett’s 1965 single, but the horn section is spot on and Sean Hopper’s organ parts have the necessary amount of retro cool to make them have a classic feel. Lewis takes the song and delivers a very natural performance, resisting temptation to change the vocal in any way. Naturally, it doesn’t match Pickett’s spiky delivery, but it’s a more than worthy cover. During Solomon Burke’s ‘Got To Get You Off My Mind’, Lewis’s vocal is an easy one – a match for the deliveries on his self-written soulful material – but it’s the tight horn section and the laid back drums which recreate most of the old soul sound. The band sounds fantastic on their version of ‘Don’t The Green Grass Fool You’ (originally recorded by Wilson Pickett in 1970) with Stef Burns capturing the smooth jazz influences in the lead guitar parts perfectly and the horns provide a great accompaniment to Bill Gibson’s upfront drums. The sax break is superb and Lewis’s vocals are effortless. John Pierce is the real hero of this number though: listen carefully – amongst all those more obvious attention grabbing elements, his bass runs are incredibly busy.

The much covered ‘Respect Yourself’ appears here with plenty of confidence and a sharp line on the electric piano. While Huey’s delivery is perfect and the backing vocal harmonies add the necessary amount of depth, it feels a little slow. It’s certainly lacking the sassy qualities of The Staple Singers’ classic 1971 version, but thankfully, is it isn’t as heavy handed as Joe Cocker’s slightly shouty take on this classic from 2002. Against the odds, the title cut (originally recorded by Isaac Hayes on the ‘Shaft’ soundtrack) rather suits Huey’s slightly husky tones. The News replicate the laid back musical arrangement of the original the best they’re able, but understandably due to 21st Century recording techniques, the end result sounds shinier than Hayes’s Stax recording. Of particular note here is Bill Gibson’s understated drum work, which does very little until the pre-chorus, at which point, it has a great live sound.

The treatment of Eddie Floyd’s ‘Never Found a Girl’ is a stand out. The smoothness of Floyd’s original cut – heavy on the harmonies and strings – has been given a little extra punch by the News. While still very respectful to the original, the piano part here is presented far higher in the mix; Sean Hopper contributes brilliant stabbing keys here, very complimentary to Huey’s vocal delivery. While the band is in good shape and the arrangement is pretty much note-for-note, a take on Rufus Thomas’s ‘Little Sally Walker’ falls short of the mark. While it could be argued the band sound like they’re having fun (and Lewis himself is relishing every line), that’s part of the problem – this version of ‘Little Sally Walker’ sounds like something Lewis would have delivered as part of his starring role in ‘Duets’, karaoke style. It’s not bad by any means, but it could’ve turned out better, even though it stood little to no chance of being as energetic as Thomas’s original. A version of Joe Tex’s ‘I Want To Do Everything For You’ highlights exactly why a soul covers record is a great vehicle for Huey Lewis and The News. The lead vocal is spot on, made even better by a decent harmony vocal (which although not quite a complete reproduction of the the original, is still a really good stab) and the band are equally on form. Stef Burns gets a brief chance to step away from rhythm guitar work and turn in a couple of quick leads. Even Lewis himself grabs the opportunity to whip out his harmonica for a solo.

Lewis steps down at the album’s close, allowing The News chance to really shine on a rendition of the Mar-Keys number ‘Grab This Thing’. Obviously, being a Mar-Keys track, it’s up to the horns to take front and centre stage – and the guys here are more than up to the task. The sax leads are attention grabbing without becoming aggressive and the accompanying rhythms are hard hitting, befitting of the classic Stax approach. There are a couple of great opportunities missed here though, since Sean Hopper doesn’t get to recreate the organ solo and Stef Burns, likewise, is restricted to rhythm work, choosing not to re-interpret Steve Cropper’s guitar solo. It’s over a minute shorter than the Mar-Key’s version and a tiny bit slower, but these are very minor complaints.

After nearly a decade without new material from Lewis and his News, it would have been so good for them to deliver a disc brimming with new compositions, maybe with a couple of these covers thrown in. But since that wasn’t to be, looking at ‘Soulsville’ for what it offers, it’s a decent record – and one which makes a good companion piece to their 1994 rock ‘n’ roll covers album, ‘Four Chords and Several Years Ago’. Do yourselves a big favour though: if you enjoyed this record, check out the original artists’ recordings of these songs if you haven’t already done so.

October 2010

Posted in pop

EDWARD O’CONNELL – Our Little Secret

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Packaged in sleeve featuring a great homage to Nick Lowe’s solo debut ‘Jesus of Cool’, this release by Edward O’Connell has a sound which is almost timeless. Its songs could have been recorded at any point after the mid-eighties and performed by anyone aged between 25 and 60.

If you’re a fan of Tom Petty, it’s likely you’ll find an instant affinity with this album’s opening number ‘Acres of Diamonds’, since it could have been pulled straight off his ‘Full Moon Fever’ record. Granted, O’Connell may be wearing an influence on his sleeve here, but the end result is expertly delivered. With a crisp sound, all ringing guitars and retro-pop hooks, it’s unlikely that if this fell into the hands of Petty the end result would have sounded any better. ‘I Heard It Go’ features a similar sound, but is slightly more upbeat; it’s catchy chorus and slide guitar part evokes parts of George Harrison’s ‘Cloud 9’ album (again, it’s that Jeff Lynne produced Wilbury sound which begs the comparisons).

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