In a interesting mirror of 1960s music culture, the first decade of the 21st century has seen a to and fro between American and British artists building on a folkish base with a vast array of technological embellishment. It’s difficult to imagine Animal Collective arriving at their current æsthetic without the input of Müm or Tunng. And, conversely, the whole New Wyrd America scene can be made out through the prisms of releases by the likes of Broadcast or Leafcutter John.
It is into this general fold that Erland and the Carnival (E&TC) emerge with their debut album. Erland is Erland Cooper, a newcomer, surrounded by the likes of guitarist Simon Tong (The Good The Bad and The Queen, Verve) and drummer David Knock (The Fireman). It’s a nice mix of experience and new ideas which are harnessed well across the album. With a folkish base, the group use that foundation to head for the stars. ‘Love Is A killing Thing’ starts with clanging cymbals building up before dropping into a gentle dirge before building to a cacophony of guitar scree, with plenty of strange organ noise along the way. There’s plenty of plaintive acoustic guitar – ‘Disturbed This Morning’ spending its first half gentle guitar and vocal exercise before delayed analog synths freakout, while bonus track ‘Arabian Sea’ keeps the more freak-out exploration under the lid. But the general mood is of jaunty sonic exploration. The keyboard elements, in particular, bely time spent listening to Canterbury psych-jazz or 13th Floor Elevators – late 60s experimentation before it turned into prog excess.
Melodically, Cooper is quintessentially British. His forebears can be found in classic groups such as Pentangle or in more recent output from groups like Hamilton Yarns, the similarities being a meandering sense of melody with clearly enunciated lyrics. These tend towards the surreally twisted observational – “There was Joan and Jane and Betty/Eating Bugs and drinking Pepsi/Dancing jigs up on the fiddle/Up the sides and down the middle” begins ‘Was You Ever See’, the beginning of a series of the not quite right which gives a sense of blissful unease which is consistent across the album. Everything feels happy but on closer observation just aren’t what they initially appear, whether lyrically or sonically.
E&TC are poppier than many of the artists I’ve mentioned and Cooper’s way with a hook is excellent. The sense of upbeat jauntiness comes closest to late 80s proto-britpoppers The Las and Cooper’s voice is often reminiscent of Ian Brown or Kula Shaker’s Crispian Mills, all further ties to the album’s very British sense of weirded up and fuzzed out out pastoral folk. I’m enjoying Erland And The Carnival immensely and highly recommend it.
Adrian Elmer
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