![\"primitives\"](\"http:\/\/eyeplug.net\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/07\/primitives.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nLovely\u00a0<\/em>– The Primitives<\/strong>\u00a0– Cherry Red double CD CDBRED 578<\/p>\n The current upsurge of interest in the 1980\u2019s does have a saving grace. The decade that is almost universally loathed for its opportunistic, lightweight pop noodlings was the setting for some extraordinarily beautiful, nostalgic and plaintive music. Step forward Coventry\u2019s Primitives.<\/p>\n Devotees of the jangling guitar sound, driving, metronomic bass and drums, and Tracey Tracey\u2019s lemon and honey voice, \u2018Crash\u2019 burst its way into the already tightly packed pop charts like a souped-up mini through a pile of tea chests. This followed the comparative failure of two excellent singles, \u2018Stop Killing Me\u2019 and \u2018Thru The Flowers\u2019 but they\u2019re on this \u2018re-release plus\u2019 of their debut album, so no grumbles from me.<\/p>\n The template was established from day one, but not slavishly adhered to; a little Country & Western whine gave \u2018Carry Me Home\u2019 a separate identity, and the Eastern stylings of \u2018Shadow\u2019 brought sophistication and showed an awareness of the emerging Bhangra music scene that indie fans might have been unaware of before this.<\/p>\n Reverting to type never did them any harm, and with standouts like \u2018I\u2019ll Stick With You\u2019 and \u2018Run, Baby Run\u2019, it\u2019s not surprising they took this course.<\/p>\n The clean, breezy atmosphere of most of their work is a sugared pill, as lyrics reveal themselves to contain joyful brush-offs like \u2018Way Behind Me\u2019, abrupt warnings like \u2018Crash\u2019 and the mocking humour of \u2018Spacehead\u2019.<\/p>\n The pot was kept boiling, in terms of musical style and quality, for a few more years, but \u2018Crash\u2019 represented the peak of their success. Remixes and cinematic use have followed, testament to the enduring strength of this irresistible track. Happily, The Primitives are touring once more, and you can check out Long John\u2019s review<\/a> of their appearance at the recent \u2018Scared To Get Happy\u2019 gig, elsewhere on Eyeplug\u2019s site.<\/p>\n Disc 2 is a mixed bag of alternate takes and live tracks that would probably have been best left on the editing suite floor. A slowed-down \u2018Crash\u2019? An acoustic \u2018Way Behind Me\u2019? Even Primitives completists might balk at the presumption of releasing material like this.<\/p>\n The return of their sweet, tuneful sound is more than welcome, and this re-release would fill a fun shaped gap in anyone\u2019s record collection. Buy HERE!<\/a><\/p>\n The Clock Comes Down The Stairs<\/em> –\u00a0Microdisney<\/strong>\u00a0 –\u00a0CDMRED 581<\/p>\n Cherry Red are offering us an opportunity to catch up on Microdisney, a duo from County Cork who infiltrated the world of rock in the early 80\u2019s with artistically valid intentions, if little commercial success.<\/p>\n This, their fourth album, sees singer Cathal Coughlan and guitarist Sean O\u2019 Hagan in confident form, penning thoughtful tales of life, love gone sour, drug addiction, ambition and much else besides. The sparse, unobtrusive backing from Sean O\u2019Hagan and supporting cast is balanced with the strong singing style of Cathal Coughlan, reminiscent of Scott Walker, as big personal issues are tackled head-on. A hint of twangy guitar punctuates, without overpowering the songs.<\/p>\n In \u2018Horse Overboard\u2019, it\u2019s the sweetness of the music, with its suggestion of steel drum that lulls the listener into a false sense of security as an old salt recounts the break-up of his marriage.<\/p>\n Thwarted ambition and the inequality of life in the 1980\u2019s is rolled out on the Dickens-like \u2018Past\u2019, as girl, in her search for employment, ends up losing her home and possessions and finds herself on the gin house floor.<\/p>\n Atonement is, unsurprisingly, a favourite theme, and well realised with the surreal \u2018Humane\u2019, a typically intense view of the father\/son relationship with madcap farmyard imagery. \u2018Genius\u2019, with its deceptively happy tune, tells the tale of a philanderer who returns home to face the consequences of his infidelity, all the while trying to convince himself of his great talent by repeating \u2019You\u2019re a genius, you\u2019re a giant\u2019 in his head.<\/p>\n \u2019Are you Happy\u2019 sees us back in break-up aftermath mode, this time the former lover haunting our narrator like an old ghost, all to a nervous soundtrack of alienation with a five mile run-out.<\/p>\n \u2018Goodbye It\u2019s 1987\u2019\u2019s twanging guitars and stentorian vocal delivery perfectly suit the tale of urban isolation in a climate of impending war.<\/p>\n The tragedy of youthful drug addiction is played out in \u2018Money for Trams\u2019, with a tense bass rumble and a snaking sound to the drums building a suitably uncomfortable atmosphere, only topped by the screamed refrain of \u2018Take Your Stinking Clothes Off\u2019. As a piece of theatre, it works brilliantly, but beggars the question, who would enjoy it as a piece of pop music?<\/p>\n Added bonuses include B Sides and Peel Sessions that often prove more illuminating than their official LP versions, \u2018Genius\u2019 in particular. The upbeat rhythm of \u2018464\u2019 takes us to late night Jazz club territory, but not for long. This tale of a corny attempt at seduction ends up with the narrator bemoaning the loss of a friend\u2019s former home to the wrecker\u2019s ball.<\/p>\n The broad church of 1980\u2019s pop\/rock music saw its courage and tolerance tested with Microdisney\u2019s sweet and sour tales of life. Give it a try, but take care; the taste may not be easy to get out of your mouth. Buy HERE!<\/a><\/p>\nMicrodisney<\/h1>\n
<\/a><\/p>\nMicrodisney<\/h1>\n