CAPILLARY ACTION – Fragments (Pangaea Recordings)
Posted: November 29th, 2005, by Simon MinterI’ve been putting off writing about this album for ages. There’s such a gargantuan collision of styles on display here that it’s hard to know where to begin. Over the course of ten tracks, Capillary Action display elements of King Crimson’s kooky song structures, the Fucking Champs’ NWOBHM-drenched metallic gleam, Lightning Bolt’s clattering chaos and disorientation, the chunks of rock favoured across the Oxes/American Heritage/Don Caballero axis and – more surprisingly despite all of that – Mike Oldfield’s pastoral mutterings and any number of cheese-laden jazz-lite conspirators. Initially, I found this a difficult album to get through – at first listen it’s nigh-on impossible to get a handle on who Capillary Action really are, if not simply a duplicator of musical styles. This seems genuinely to be an album which benefits from repeated plays, and I think I finally get it after many spins: the album works as a whole, and should only be taken as such. The high quality parts of the album far outshine the low, and ultimately this is more than a collection of Fragments.
Pangaea Recordings
Capillary Action
Simon Minter
Simon joined diskant after falling on his head from a great height. A diskant legend in his own lifetime Simon has risen up the ranks through a mixture of foolhardiness and wit. When not breaking musical barriers with top pop combo Sunnyvale Noise Sub-element or releasing records in preposterously exciting packaging he relaxes by looking like Steve Albini.
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