Saturday 1 April 2006

Semifinalists – Semifinalists (Regal Bear)

Straight outta, um, Indonesia and bits of America, Semifinalists cram more ideas into any random 30 seconds of this record than is decent and reasonable. Of course, such an overflowing cup of cranial riches often sounds bloody awful, but the trio manages to keep hold of the reins for 40 whole minutes before everything gallops off. Mind-expanding hippie imagery - “He opened up the can of life,” anyone? - rubs Hessian shoulders with vocalists Ferry and Adriana's complementary but wildly different singing styles – the results, especially on highlights 'Origin Song' and 'Let's Kill This', are arresting, dynamic and rather lovely, like Grandaddy twiddling with the Boo Radleys' 'Giant Steps'. They even hit janglepop gold on 'I Saw You In The Hall'. Delightful.

Charlie Ivens

The Flaming Lips – At War With The Mystics (Warners)

This time, “something new again” is what we've been promised by more than one member of The Flaming Lips. In case you've been lost in space for eight years, '...Mystics' is the final installment of the trilogy which began with 1998's 'The Soft Bulletin' and blossomed into 2003's 'Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots'. For those wondering where the Flips could possibly go after the latter, the answer is...backwards and, confusingly, forwards. If the idea of Curtis Mayfield re-imagining The Carpenters (with NERD) doesn't appeal, leave 'Free Radicals', 'The WAND' and, frankly, this whole album well alone. Blistering spaceprog wig-outs, monstrously overloaded drums and Wayne Coyne's sublimely beatific worldview combine on a wildly ambitious album that fills your soul with flames and glitter. We are powerless. Repent!

Charlie Ivens

Nightmare Of You – Nightmare Of You (Full Time Hobby/Bevonshire)

Nightmare Of You may look like The OC on toast, but these Long Islanders aren't mucking about. “I wanna kiss you on the mouth and tell you I'm your biggest fan,” is a line tailor-made for lovestruck fans to sing back at them – since the last band to sound this convincingly mid-80s and British and pop were The Killers, who knows what might happen?

Charlie Ivens

The Rumble Strips - Let's Get Ready To Rumble feature

“I listen to rock'n'roll/But I ain't got no soul,” runs one song. “If only this bike was a motorcycle/I'd be halfway home by now,” trills another. Bare-faced false modesty and commendable, whimsical ambition – just two of Devon leftpop mavericks The Rumble Strips' manifold qualities.

Sat in a north London pub, the band – that's singer/guitarist Charlie, trumpet/keys/vocalist Henry, sax/bass/vocalist Tom and drummer Matt – look for all the world like they've just stepped out of a hedge: a mess of unkempt hair, charity shop clobber and (possibly) leaves. “There has to be a balance between very clever and extremely stupid in music,” Charlie will say, strengthening his already compelling argument by invoking the cleverest, stupidest popstar of all, Adam Ant.

As you'll have gathered from the above list, The Rumble Strips have brass: brass instruments, sure, and brass necks for cheerfully sounding as waywardly, bizarrely exciting as pop music has sounded for some years. Half of them are currently homeless, but it doesn't seem to bother them too much; in fact, nothing – their recent deal with Transgressive, the prospect of multiple gigs at Texan festival/showcase SXSW, the fact that they Just Don't Fit In Anywhere – seems to faze them at all. Comparisons with Dexy's (the horns), The Futureheads (the close harmony singing) and The Stranglers (Charlie's voice) all fall short of what is, really, a bloody odd, wonderful noise.

They freely admit the provenance of their sound is “mistakes” – and to odd, ramshackle people do odd things happen. “This Russian guy saw us by accident in London and flew us to Moscow to play one gig,” Tom says, like it's just another day at the office, “we ended up ratted on vodka in a club full of only beautiful girls...and us. But we all fell over.” “You've always got to have a bit of a plan,” Charlie insists. My guess is they have nothing of the sort, but hey, that's what management's for. Let the rumbles begin.

The Rumble Strips release their as-yet untitled second single through Transgressive in April. The splendid video for “Motorcycle” (cost: £10) is on their MySpace page. Go seek.

Charlie Ivens