| Colin McIntyre
is Mull Historical Society. He writes their songs, sings their
vocals, plays their instruments and produces their records.
He even designs the sleeves. Heck, the only part of the band
he didn't create is its name. But on July 3 2002, in the midst
of recording their ace second album, he finally met the people
who did.
Even though Colin hasn't lived on the beautiful
Scottish isle of Mull for years (he recently moved from Glasgow
to London), with a population of just 2,500, the chances of
bumping into those responsible for his band's name on one
of his visits back were always high. And sure enough, as he
stood up to deliver the speech he'd been asked to give at
his old school's presentation day that July afternoon, Colin
was told that several members of the real Mull Historical
Society were in the audience.
'I've never been more nervous than standing
in front of the school doing that speech,' he admits, 'and
to find out some of the real Society members were there made
it even worse. I actually thought I'd pissed myself with nerves.
The first thing I did was to apologise to them for two years
of focus they could have done without.'
He probably needn't have bothered. After
all, Colin's decision to borrow the Society's name for his
band has surely made them the UK's most famous local history
group. They've seen their organisation namechecked everywhere
from CD:UK and the Top 40 singles chart to The Face and The
Daily Telegraph. Meanwhile over 60,000 households across the
land cherish 'Loss', the first album to bear their name. The
Society's fame is even spreading internationally - the day
after Colin's school speech (a fine performance, insist witnesses)
he found himself on a New York stage playing the band's debut
American gig (ditto).
Those two days in July were certainly stressful
('I had to get from Mull to New York in world record time,'
shudders Colin) but they illustrate how far Colin has come
since the musical version of the Mull Historical Society arrived
on the scene late in 2000 with their first single, 'Barcode
Bypass'. A wonderfully offbeat seven minute ode to a failing
cornershop owner, the song gave us the first inkling of a
talent that blossomed a few months later on 'Loss'.
Marrying the experimental instincts and
rich instrumentation of the Beta Band and Flaming Lips with
the belting pop sensibility of The Beatles and The Las, 'Loss'
wasn't just one of those albums that attracted huge critical
acclaim and then sold 200 copies. No, thanks to a further
hat-trick of belting singles ('I Tried', 'Animal Cannabus'
and the Top 40 hit 'Watching Xanadu') and a series of inflatable
sheep-infested gigs, the record-buying public took it to their
hearts too. In just a year, Colin and his live bandmates went
from supporting The Strokes on their toilet venue debut UK
tour to headlining a packed Shepherds Bush Empire.
The stage was set for album number two and,
early last year Colin - a prolific tunesmith since his childhood
- went back to the studio with countless songs to work on.
Ninety-five recording days later he emerged with 'Us', an
album laden with Colin's trademark tales, shimmering melodies
and glorious 24 carat choruses you'll be humming for far longer
than it takes to listen to them.
While instantly recognisable as a Mull record,
the album marks an obvious progression for Colin. 'I think
I've stripped things down,' he says. 'I've still tried to
use different instruments and to really push myself, but it's
more concise this time. When I was recording it, some of the
songs had 90 separate tracks on them, but when I was mixing
it I was much more brutal than with 'Loss'. I took away so
much stuff that I'd added. Y'know, sometimes you don't need
keyboard zaps.' Instead the songs have been given room to
stand up for themselves.
'Us' is also a more overtly personal record
than 'Loss'. 'On the first album I tried to relay a lot of
my thoughts and emotions through characters,' admits Colin,
'but there's less of that on 'Us'. It is a lot more about
me.' That newfound openness burns bright on songs about avoiding
emotional ruts (first single 'Final Arrears'), learning to
like yourself (the unfeasibly catchy 'Asylum') and not taking
life too seriously (the power-poptastic 'Gravity').
But the sharp observational songs that led
to comparisons between 'Loss' and 'The League Of Gentlemen'
are here too. Colin's ability to spin a ripping yarn is reaffirmed
by tracks like the claustrophobic 'Minister For Genetics And
Insurance', which shows the world closing in on a depressed
MP and 'The Supermarket Strikes Back', the sequel to 'Barcode
Bypass' in which the evil supermarket owner has to face his
conscience.
Not surprisingly, Colin is incredibly pleased
with the album. 'I loved recording it,' he says. 'I felt really
confident with the songs I had to choose from. In fact, in
the studio there'd be times I was actually hurting because
of how many songs I was trying to deal with. But the 14 that
became 'Us' just rose to the top.' They certainly did.
Colin should probably give his new
friends at the real Mull Historical Society a call. Because
having written, performed and produced another corker, the
attention and praise heaped upon their namesake won't be easing
off anytime soon.
www.mullhistoricalsociety.com
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