Graham Reid | | 1 min read
Raleigh Arena
It is no exaggeration to say that every week Elsewhere sees half a dozen singles from new young local artists being highly touted and almost the same number of album from those who have just started to make an impression.
“It's a hard world to get a break in”, as the song says and unfortunately we'd observe the overselling a young artists' talents by well-meaning PR people might just give some a false sense of expectation.
How do you come back from being a songwriting sensation or the most promising artist of the year if your debut “soon-to-be-smash hit” single doesn't sell?
Our observation is many of those with proven longevity actually started more quietly than being acclaimed in the publicity for a debut single.
Jim Nothing is Auckland's James Sullivan and I don't recall any fuss (or even publicity) about his 2013 debut album Death Traps or subsequent singles.
But he's still here and doing it.
His self-confessed touchstones are a trickle-down of the Clean and Snapper, most evident here on the cycleway rhythm of Raleigh Arena with “I get around town on my bicycle and it feels so good and it feels so free”. Repeat, then repeat again.
There's jangle-rock (the impressive if recognisable Hourglass, the title track), a living room singalong on the one minute Can't Find It Now (“dit-dit-dit-do”) and suggestions of Look Blue Go Purple on Sundown Clown with singer Frances Carter.
Falling somewhere between a rowdy home demo (The Shimmering) and the gritty guitar onslaught of Jesus and Mary Chain (Lucky Charm), there's also a brief good-natured nod to Plastic Bertrand's faux-punk Ça plane pour moi on First Bite.
But there's much to admire in the intelligent songcraft, and The Present with its melodic jangle and gentle roll recalls David Kilgour's early solo albums: “Seed floating in a sea of grey, with any luck I'll be here all day. An afternoon with a nod to the past, bittersweet with a nod to the present day.”
From the title inward, this is suburban alt.rock, as on Easter at the RSC : “Old timers try their luck at the TAB. Long weekend, hand signals to the ref”.
If the pop charms are familiar, they charm nonetheless.
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You can hear and buy this album at bandcamp here
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