I love writing. Possibly the worst way to start a review ever, but you’ll get over it. I love sitting down, the room lit only by the computer monitor, slotting a CD into my monolithic sound system and kicking back with the music and perhaps a magazine as my only company. Easy listening. Rumbleseat, also known as “that old side project from the Hot Water Music guys”, is probably best classed as a more easy listening version of their more famous project. Its folky rhythms are, at worst, a little boring and clichéd, but at best they’re really rather good. The vocals are less gruff than HWM, and they have a much warmer feel to go hand-in-hand with their folk accompaniment. The simplicity of the songs here is really something to behold; you’re hooked in by the better ones whether you try to fit it or not. And that’s the essence here: good, poppy folk with a few notches in the belt of the songwriter which are blatantly obvious whether you’re a long-time HWM fan or a complete newcomer.
Enough with the comparisons, silly boy. This record is obviously going to hold a special place in the hearts of fans of Against Me! et al and well it might, for theirs a catchiness about it that is, dare I say it, slightly reminiscent of Thursday acoustic material at time. Tracks like ‘Saturn in Crosshairs’ perfectly marry the combination of an impressive reputation, punk-folk lyrics and irresistible melodies in a sexual three-way sexy enough to have Pat Sharpe playing through his old Fun House tapes and dreaming of what might have been. It is, however, an imperfect dream. The record itself is fully an hour long: 12 clean-cut tracks and 6 seemingly bolted-on ones of almost demo quality – guaranteed to appeal to those whose reasons for listening to vinyl are no greater than they want to look gain a few scene points, but not to me. They’re not necessary and not a patch on the (largely) good material which precedes them.
Face facts, though. Hot Water Music (I’m sorry!) it aint. This isn’t the most diverse record in the world, and you’re not going to hear it played in any standard alt. club any time soon, but it’s got that something that kept me listening to the end; even if, by then, you are a little bored and begging for just a touch of power.
www.rumbleseat.net
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