Remarkable. Captain Wilberforce is supposedly a two-man band, but the sleeve notes mention but one Simon Bristoll as the guy who wrote and performed everything (except drums on a couple of tracks) on this nine-track, 32 minute CD of jaunty jangly indie pop. I’m sure the press release that I accidentally lost for this thing mentioned Radiohead at least twice, yet with all the harmonies and bright guitars playing major chords going on make me think of the mid-nineties, and Teenage Fanclub in particular. Impressive stuff for just one guy, especially as he’s tighter and more inventive than most of all those big indie guitar pop bands that Captain Wilberforce is so reminiscent of. He’s got a nice line in droll lyrics too, reflected in the song titles. My favourite is “Singer Wanted, Preferably Dead”. All the layers of instruments are well-constructed and everything locks together like an efficient machine of indie mayhem.

All very good, but Cpt. Wilberforce also managed to create 32 minutes of music without a particularly memorable hook to stick in your mind. Which is a shame, because everything else about this record is perfectly fine. Keep on going Captain, in this vein you’ll soon reach that treasure ye be seeking.

http://www.captainwilberforce.com/

Posted: 09|4|05 at 1:51 pm. Filed under: record reviews.
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