Back in the mists of time, there was a band called Black Rebel Motorcycle Club. They were darlings of the NME for a time, their first album and insatiably hedonistic tendencies led to them having many followers.
Gritty, echoing shadows floated in between their notes, and the bulk of their material was, at least in the beginning, an exciting distillation of their Velvets/J&MC/Spaceman 3 influences. The Lost Souls Club seem to have picked up the torch where BRMC left off. Their spatter-fuzzed, edgy strut wholeheartedly calls Hayes & co. to mind, imagery included. However, there is something else.
Where their peers were patchy and droopy at times, TLSC are taut, precise and consistent. This EP, one of three releases to emerge on Bandcamp in the last year and accompanied by two videos, contains no more or less than needed to come across beautifully. High Noon’s 5 tracks run from stompy garage to more restrained, pastoral fare, which is a welcome change.
Romeo and its shot-in-an-industrial-unit video is pleasingly spluttery; wonderful fuzz tones spasm like shocked snakes through crumbling brickwork, Tufnell’s voice a firm but languid tenor gliding over proceedings. Kiss Away The Sun could, in fact, be BRMC, though its restrained, dulcet shimmer is to be highly commended. The visual representation of this track is well realised, fitting the music wonderfully.
Events suddenly leap forward on Shoot Me Down, where the band’s true nature begins to reveal itself. Worth listening to for the first 30 seconds alone, all deep groove and fetid bass grot. The band seem to be much more comfortable in the myriad dynamics displayed here, the EP suddenly no longer drowsy, as though it had been on standby. Great chorus, and it swings like a bastard. The glide into EP highlight I Know I Spoke Too Soon is admirable; there is a cascading majesty to this pairing. Tufnell comes into his own here, his well-pitched delivery ably backed by Jackson’s unfettered slide work.
Although final track We’re All Gonna Die Anyway feels a little bit throwaway, it remains well executed, and the latter third of the tune will work well in a live setting. High Noon transcends its obvious roots to reveal a band with enormous potential. Taking the more considered, dynamic approach of Shoot… and …Soon will serve TLSC in good stead for riding the hype wave that seems to be coming their way.
This is a good band with a good recording that undoubtedly deserves your attention. One to watch for sure-there’s a great band in here, nearly ready to hatch.