Labels: Patsy – Radio One
Review by: Nadia Almashoor
So… Melbourne’s sexiest band release their debut longplayer. With their cd sleeves in black white and red, it’s almost easy to denote them as your stereotypical spock-kraut-rock-no-new-wave band. I said… “almost”.
Sure, when I first saw them exactly a year ago, I thought “Hey! Crimson Curse.” But they are far from that comparison. And as the months trudged along and more gigs following after, they evolved…playing faster, tighter and to amazingly increasing crowds. And recently, even managed to slip into the opening act for Trans Am.
Songs are familiar since I’ve been hearing them live but on record it’s an entirely different experience. An entire new setlist. Opener ‘Black Chair In A Black Room’ fills the air with saxophones, bringing in the pounding drums, chunky bass, the expectant dual-keyboard domination. Drummer Sean Bailey wails despairingly in his English accented vocals…and they start to hook you in. In ‘A Spectacle’, keyboardist Amy Clarke adds more variety to the vocal work. Bailey and Clarke over eerie cinematic gothic drones and angular guitars reciting about “…mechanical arms…mechanical brains”. Then there is the personal favourite ‘Hearts And Arrows’. From the oh so out of print demo tape. Pumping it faster than the orginal. More spastic. More frenzy.
A course of 14 tracks. *Almost* making it a difficult trip for the virgin listener as there are static breaks in between. (One with a deranged circus tune.) But not to be dismissed and with more releases on the way (a split single with Black Cat #13! Yeah! Yeah!)…you ain’t seen nothin’ yet.