Play 90 second soundbite of 'Broadcast' @ 'CD quality'
I won't go into the reasoning for the artist's name, better that I get right on with my findings concerning this really unusual five track EP. Forget genre limitations, don't even bother to try to make sense out of Russell's Teapot's eclectic but really thought-provoking EP coz Russell's Teapot aka Russell Alsop turns popular music on its head here; he defies convention as he lays down breathtakingly original songs/tunes that just won't be pigeonholed. Opening with the stunning, almost folk poetry of 'Broadcast' and I'm straightway mindful of the late, great Marc Bolan; Alsop sings with a seemingly natural 'warble' in his voice, not quite a natural vibrato, but a distinctive warble somewhat like Bolan had. 'Broadcast' is a great opener and it'd make for a crackin' single in its own right. Next we arrive at 'Big Man'; more Bolan 'warble' with mandolin and sequential male harmonies and great lyrics - clever this - short and sweet though!! Next the somewhat angular 'Heaven's Gate' and again Bolan-esque delivery but this time with some early Caravan-esque 'organ' thrown in. This is another very beautiful and very clever song with a haunting repetitive backdrop that then gets bombarded with some screamin' juxtaposed guitar work before the vocals return to calm it all down again. 'Desire' finds Alsop in electro mode with a slowish but robust synths-and-things work-out. More experimental soundtrack than dance, more escapism than commercial and with a slightly dark feel, its spoken-word vocals over an industrial sounding prog-loop makes 'Desire' totally unlike the previous tracks and it comes as quite a surprise. The EP closes with 'Hindsight Devotee' which dips one foot into electro dance idiom but keeps the other squarely in sensible 'pop' territory with a sensitive vocal 'scene' that sits almost completely opposed to the other 'themes' being offered. A real walk through modern popular music in short time this!!
'Desire' by Russell's Teapot is massively different but incredibly entertaining and quite intoxicating - genre befuddlement at its most rampant - modern music on many levels and a pretty challenging but innovative work-out. I really enjoyed my short time with Russell's Teapot!
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