Lots of bands now come as a collective rather than a fixed line up, umbrella organisation means that whilst key individuals retain control others can be cherry picked to suit certain songs. The man with the ideas here is singer songwriter Steve Cox, obviously in love with jangly American folk rock and a certain strand of English whimsy.
His core support stretches to some ten or so individuals – check out the website- from a pleasing variety of genres, making them an eclectic bunch and perfect for the shuffling through the twelve tracks on offer. Stepping into News From Nowhere is a bit like strolling into a decent music emporium, lots of possibilities and all open for consumption. Titles like Leaving Imber and This England speak of home grown concerns and whilst there are acoustic moments, there’s also a great deal of West Coast LA jingle in the melodies. According to one on line source, this album has far more oomph in the mix than previous offerings, the whole thing seems innocent yet the centre is strong and tight knit.
You could make the point that vocally this isn’t most convincing article and there’s certainly better openers than Give Back My Heart later in the running order, This Channel’s Always On for one. However that’s all forgivable when the springing banjo drive of Red And Green coils through your headphones and leaves a smile across your face. Intriguing stuff.
Simon Jones
