Oh, it's like a bobbly, hand-knitted jumper with multicolour Stan Lee superheroes leaping out in every direction. WINTERMUTE have a pop enthusiasm, and play like geeks on sherbet.
Their dancey music is for people who just love to twitch while the music dances for them. There's a deal of stoppy starty, bit here bit there stuff that requires counting planning and practising hard. But the puppyish yelping and the simple tunes keep the whole fizzmash a long way away from exhibition math rock. Maybe it isn't rocket science, but it's lots of fun, played to entertain and to impress.
This first EP release is, on the whole, a tamed but very crisply recorded version of their live adventuring. It has plenty to listen to - a full 21 minutes worth - but to my ears doesn't quite top the first single release "Gambling Or Playing Cards" in terms of composition. The sound is all there, no complaints. But that song is the benchmark now, and these don't quite match it.
"Bad Company In A Sauna" is just the first of six nutty titles. More than traces of. The band's established sound is slower by hint of a lilt. It's a very fine parade of all the stuff they do well. Voice(s) are punchy and clear, the lead guitar pulls down some good lines and bass and drums make everything else possible.
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"Dead Or Not He was Wearing Sunglasses" speeds up and has some terrific dual guitar charges (Dan Howard vs. David Hemmings). And it also has a rumbly bit of Tortoise-like bass (Chris Newbould) and drums (Ben Johnson ) before a reprise and a characteristically shouty last section at full volume with Howard and Hemmings giving it what for.
"Spanish Girls" has a hard twisted part, but uses those one-off chimed chords in which WINTERMUTE specialise. CHIIIIING! ...... (reverberating for at least a whole bar). But this time there's a strong growling guitar line as well as the mad pingy one. And plenty of two-voice shouts.
"I Abandoned My Boy! (Hello Nuts) is more contemplative, despite the wacky title.
"Emerald Hill Zone Act 2" has an echo of Spanish Girls about it, with a twelve note riff that navigates its sinuous way through the whole song.
"Jambon! Jambon!" keeps the momentum and winds it (rather than hams it) up a little more. Jolly good.
www.myspace.con/wintermuteband
www.onthebonerecords.com
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