RATTLEBUS’S self-titled debut (2008) was the kind of life-affirming, cranked-up Rock’n’Roll record I’d begun to believe bands had forgotten how to craft. Raw and rough-arsed, but bleeding with crucial melodies, it made like a glorious amalgam of The Replacements and the Bottle Rockets but came laced with its’ own special brand of cynical wisdom.
In short, it was a thrill for the ears to behold, but the fantastic news is that its’ erstwhile follow-up, ‘Did You Mean Rattlebush?’ actually tops it. Recorded at Glass in Birkenhead (Half Man Half Biscuit, Roy Cousins) with Alan Lewis at the controls and released on Andy Jones’ quality-first Pink Moon imprint, it finds the band in truly inspired form and knocking out a generous brace of 14 tracks with the kind of passion that should be mandatory in these grotesque, Simon Cowell-saturated days.
As with their debut, weak links are happily non-existent. Tremendous opening tune ‘For Your Benefit’ swiftly sets the benchmark with Tim Glover and Martin Ward’s proud, descriptive guitars cranked to the max and Phil McHoul/ Steve Vasey rhythm section pushing and pulling in all the right directions. The lyrics reference Birkenhead’s legendary Skeleton Records shop and also include one of the funniest couplets (“she got off with some Goth/ whilst wearing your cheesecloth”) I’ve heard all year.
From thereon in, you can simply enjoy one of those rare occasions when you just know you can trust the band to deliver one great track after another, whether they’re blissful, roughshod pop dalliances like ‘Savings Globe’ and ‘You Never Knew’ or a slow-burner like ‘Held my Hand; Misunderstand’ where they slow it down and give themselves a chance to breathe a little. All of them feature memorable slice of life lyrics, though my favourite is probably the vivid ‘Pedalos’ which includes the immortal lines “Said ‘Good Morning’ like the policeman from ‘Allo Allo’/ but I met joy down by the Pedalos.” In the love at first sight stakes, that one really takes some beating.
While tracks like the gritty, almost Byrds-ian chime of ‘Dawn Chorus’ and the catchy, sing-along quality of ‘Shit From the Sky’ show how adept Rattlebus are at crafting great, idiosyncratic guitar pop, they also have that Dream Syndicate-esque desire to ensure the twin guitars sideways explosion potential is never entirely squashed either. To this end, check out tracks like ‘Radiogram’ or the bravado-fuelled solos traded as ‘Melancholia Obscura’ smoulders towards its’ exhilarating conclusion. They also pull out all the stops for the epic 7-minute finale ‘Let in the Night’: a dignified, but charged plea to keepin’ on and stayin’ up (“as you grow, keep your chin up/ keep your head forever up”) which features some of the most glorious guitar interplay you’ll hear this or any other year.
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Rattlebus are seasoned campaigners. They’ve been around the block a few times and are under no illusions about the fact the industry’s staring into the abyss. Consequently, it’s a very real credit to them that their belief and passion is unshakeable as they turn in what is to these ears one of the year’s major guitar pop releases. There’s a ‘physical’ version of the album due before too much longer, but in the meantime the least you can do is visit their website and get downloading feverishly. If you still love fiery, attitude-heavy Rock’ n’ Roll you’ll wonder what took you so long to get there in the first place.
Download the album for free during November 2010 from the band's website
Pink Moon Records record store online
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