Clearlake
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| Clearlake
- Cedars - Domino - Reviewed |
What makes the English,
English? Simple, the weather. Cedars is the most English record
you will hear all year, it could only be born under battleship
grey skies, and in the face of spitting rain.
If debut album, 'Lido', laid down the
blueprint with its tales of great times down the local jumble
sale then cedars has taken that attention to the minutia
and used it to bring the big issues into clear focus. What
flows from that is an incredible poignancy. Heartbreak,
lost love and the fragility of beauty are illuminated on
a song about the weather ('Wondering if the snow will settle'),
in just such a way. Evidence of a rare talent, make your
Smiths comparisons now.
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| The band
has tried to create a rawer sound this time around and Detroit
meets Hove in the garage influence present on many of the tracks.
New single 'All the Same', to take a case in point, powers along
to chugging, rolling guitar with fantastic effect.
'Cedars'; a dark strand runs through it.
To be found in the oblivion of 'Can't feel a thing' and on
starkly shocking number, 'I'd like to hurt you', where Pegg
admits to a latent violence ('I wouldn't hurt a fly/but I'd
like to punish you'). He is verging upon breakdown by 'It's
all too much'; a rage barely suppressed glows from the slowly
and precisely delivered vocals. 'How dare you tell me I'm
some kind of freak', he sings before a savage chorus of 'Bends'
era guitars bursts open.
We feel the darkness but it doesn't ever
envelop. 'Treat yourself with kindness', is a modern day angst
classic upon which Pegg unleashes a sad, wise fury, offering
hope to a friend destroying himself with self loathing. The
anti-'Creep', if you like.
Too idiosyncratic for popular mores,
perhaps, if so 'Cedars' and Clearlake will have to remain
our special little secret.
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