The
Magnetic North – Prospect Of Skelmersdale (Full Time Hobby)
LP
/ CD / DL
Out
now
8.5
/ 10
Post-rock
shoegazers release that difficult second album.
To
be frank, an album based around the subject of Skelmersdale may not seem the
most exciting proposition. One of the
UKs ‘new towns’ built in 1961 and still professing to have no traffic lights
within its boundaries, it was created as an overspill for North Merseyside as
part of the post-war population distribution.
It failed and in the early 80s it became the residency of the
Transcendental Meditation movement in the Britain.
The
Magnetic North trio made up of Simon Tong (Blur, The Verve, Gorillaz) together
with Orcadian musician Gawain Erland Cooper and orchestral arranger Hannah Peel
(John Foxx And The Maths), have assembled something of a beauty with Prospect
Of Skelmersdale. It’s slightly folky,
with tinges of shoegaze and is altogether a lovely little beast.
The
album weaves its way through twelve tracks which take in superb songwriting and
experimentalism sometimes with a hint of sophisti-pop one hit wonders The Dream
Academy famed for their 1985 hit, the aptly named Life In A Northern Town. Although unlikely that the northern town in
question was Skem, the feel of both the hit and the set by The Magnetic North
does hold some similarities.
It’s
a short album, with quality prevailing over quantity and the sheer
deliciousness of its contents make it essential listening. Remains Of Elmer takes the sound one step
further as it introduces a racing orchestral backing against an infectious
strap-line which is difficult to shake off.
Indeed, the whole of the album is a collection of tracks which will
leave at least a short term indelible mark in your aural cavities.
Cergy
Pontoise sees Peel take over vocal duties and her angelic tones are a perfect complement
to the wind instruments which take residence within the track, and Exit
provides maybe a yearning to leave the town where brighter horizons lie.
With
clever insertions of newsreel soundbytes the album retains an interest that
many have similarly attempted and may have lost, and Pennylands (one of several
album highlights) yet again delights with its sheer simplicity and beauty.
The
Magnetic North may have done the Lancashire town some favours with this
album. Whilst lyrically it may not
always be entirely complimentary, musically and emotionally it is a cut above
and will serve the trio well if there is any justice.
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