This album comes with the best packaging I've seen on any record this year, as well as being on snot green marbled vinyl, dependent on how you put the inner sleeve into the outer sleeve it has 4 different sleeve views. The most compelling view for me is of the woman walking along a pavement towards a parked car rather than the guy with the shopping trolley in a park.
From the opening 68th In Orbit we are starting to be immersed in the world of Mt Doubt and are wondering who the other 67 people who are orbiting the object of their desire as this slow deliberate song unfolds, it's a tale that you'll come to different conclusions about at different times, Musically it has a lot going on for a tune that feels fairly minimal soulful indie.
Caravans On A Hill doesn't sound like the sort of Caravans Donald Trump is on about and it also doesn't feel like a gypsy caravan or the sort you might have won on Bullseye, but instead one that might be used by the make-up department on a film set as they sing about the headlines on this rather gently persistent song.
Yawn When I Do is the sort of thing only a true control freak could ask of a partner, this song doesn't feel that controlling but it is full of despair at the thought you might never witness another one of those yawns as it slowly meanders into your brain slowly and deliberately.
Waiting Rooms is very slow and sad like you've sat in a Waiting room for hours to receive some bad news for something that can never be fixed properly, the sparse instrumentation only adding to the feeling of dread and foreboding you may feel sitting in a waiting room.
Murmurations is very sparse and unlike watching a Murmuration of Starlings flying around, this feels like one last despairing thought to close side one of the LP.
The B-side opens with Headless a slow, almost ponderous, in it's world weary way, hoping for things to improve but knowing they may never improve no matter how much that late night saxophone floats beautifully past you.
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Stairwell Songs has an almost drone like feel to the strings and a very careworn feel to the vocals as it reminds me a bit of The Payroll Union in terms of sound and Leo Bargery's vocals but not lyrical content.
Dark Slopes Away is very bass led rumination about the bad taste left in the singers throat by what you've done to him, can he get back to the light, well this is going to take a few listens to really get the majesty and the despair of it.
Eshaness seems to be about being on the edge wondering if you'll fall in or even survive with a longing in the sound of the guitars and loneliness in the way it feels like your isolated and afraid.
The album closes with Peaks Of Wreck a slowly strummed tale of the one last look back at how things disintegrated with peaks and troughs of sound punctuating the thoughts and hopes in the lyrics as they hope to get back to Salzburg, well I'd love to go back to Salzburg again so am with them totally on that one.
The Download version contains the extra song Yr So Lucky that's an almost Tindersticks style slow piano led tale of despair for what's gone and doesn't in any way feel lucky.
Find out more at https://www.facebook.com/MtDoubt/ https://www.lastnightfromglasgow.com/artists/mt-doubt/
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