Labels: Tree
Review by: Andy Malcolm
If you’re a sucker for packaging, you have to have at least one of the titles from this 7″ series. A piece of yellow card done up to look like an envelope, with a real actual stamp on one side (franked) and on the other we have a heart shaped sticker, with the band details on it. It’s so nice. Then take a look inside, and there is another little envelope, which I haven’t opened yet, I don’t know if I should! Oh, ok. Cool! Some bits of photocopied paper with photos on. One is a postcard of a boat being abandoned by it’s crew. The other two are about the bands, Sweep The Leg Johnny have their picture and A Minor Forest appear to have a clock and a guy apparently trying to cover the camera with his hand. This is just so neat! I guess I’d better talk about the music now.
Alas, it failed to live up to the packaging, though I quite like Sweep The Leg Johnny’s effort, that is, I think it’s them. Like the Get Up Kids / Braid split, it’s just got maps on each side of the 7″ and I had to deduce who was who from the bits of paper. They do a track of erratic, shouty sort of jazzy rock, but up against Pave the Rocket and Roadside Monument who also make weird sounding rock that I have heard, I think this is way better. They also go a bit more ‘sensible’ for a portion of the record, and that part sounds lovely. It also wraps up in a real cool vein. Strangely nice.
As for A Minor Forest, well. I’m not sure what’s going on here. Nothing happens for a while, then there are just some noises, some of which may just be caused by accident. Ah, here it comes. Then they make some more noises, but this time using instruments. And they do this for ages. No vocals, but it sounds like they sampled some guys off the radio talking. Sorry, I just don’t get it. Some people obviously do, maybe that’s you. Weird with a capital ‘you what?’. If you like all phreaky and way original stuff then you’ll almost certainly love it though.
Certainly different and not my cup of cocoa, but you just have to see the coolest packaging. Aww.