http://www.friendsoftheheroes.co.uk/...ic/week70.html
There is a warming aura about split singles, about musical offerings that are put out under a blanket of sheer exuberance, self belief and swaggering confidence; when the desire to have your music heard stretches beyond the financial constraints of both your own, and the record company's budget. That feeling that somebody somewhere is so convinced that you will love their record that they are willing so share their much coveted seven inches of vinyl with another gang from the other side of town. I don’t believe for one minute that it is a sign of weakness, I wouldn’t suggest that these bands are running before they can walk, but I am saying that it is clear that on this record we have two bands who are both something special in their own right. They espouse a clear desire to be heard, that’s bad if you’re talentless, but it’s great if you happen to be in either of these bands. Split singles may be sneered at by the big boys, but remember, it was the mainstay of 2 Tone, it was the embodiment of Stiff and the champion of Cherry Red. There should be more of them...
Mercury Tilt Switch lift a sound from the north-western seaboard of America and relocate it to their native Dundee with ease, searing guitar, pounding rhythm and pained vocals all come together effortlessly and make their heady way towards the apocalyptic climax. It’s for certain that these boys are working up a sweat. It’s not laid back, it’s certainly not filed under ‘easy listening’, it is however direct, brutal and bruising. It’s no nonsense, and as the kids say ‘it kicks ass’.
Flip the vinyl and you will find yourself in come down wonderland. The A Forest were the reason that I rooted out this record, and I certainly wasn’t let down. In an ethereally Stereolabby kind of way they caress the senses and soothe away the rigours of life. I don’t profess to understand the lyrics, it seems that ‘A’-Level French was mightily successful in Eastern Scotland, but in that same way an instrumental can set the scene, the vocal tracks here evoke scenes of tranquillity that are hard to ignore. Think dreamy, think gentle luscious scented breezes, think overwhelming calm and you’re halfway there, add in vocal lines that Elizabeth Fraser would kill for and you have hit the nail on the head.
They say that music is often a reflection of your surroundings, if that is the case then Mercury Tilt Switch and The A Forest must be living at completely opposite ends of Dundee. Their respective offerings may be wildly different, but they both have one obvious theme running through them, and that is the fact that here are two bands, not from a popular place, embracing their intellectual and musical sensibilities and serving up two fantastic audible moments.
I implore you to listen; it’s your New Year promise
