catalogue

TUBS, THE

DEAD MEAT (TROUBLE IN MIND)

TUBS, THE - DEAD MEAT 155621
format:
1 CD
release:
27.01.2023
label:
TROUBLE IN MIND
item ID:
155621
barcode:
0650076674034
London group The Tubs' full-length debut album entitled "Dead Meat". The band were formed in 2018 from the ashes of beloved UK post-punk band Joanna Gruesome by former members Owen 'O' Williams and George 'GN' Nicholls.

By incorporating elements of post-punk, traditional British folk, and guitar jangle seasoned by nonchalant Cleaners From Venus-influenced pop hooks and contemporary antipodean indie bands (Twerps, Goon Sax, et al).

"Dead Meat" is resplendent in hi-fidelity strum & thrum, incorporating fleeting elements of post-punk and indie jangle, but the group's penchant for trad British folk & Canterbury folk-rock takes a noticeable, caffeinated step forward.

Echoes of Fairport Convention's decidedly English chime cross swords with singer Owen Williams' lyrics directing Bryan Ferry's "thinking man's libertine" persona into a more dolorous outlook.

Many songs (like "Round The Bend" and "Duped") soar with an urgent strum under Williams' acerbic lyrics, recalling a younger fiery Richard Thompson.

They languish in an aching, bitter resignation (of both the situations described & the protagonist's place in it), particularly near the album's second half.

Others like the previously released "I Don't Know How It Works", "Two Person Love" and "Illusion" (re-presented here as "Illusion Pt.

II" and all rerecorded from their original 7-inch versions) up the urgency, implying that the journey for the person described in each tune is not over & may be even more desperate than before.

The band has never been tighter & more dynamic, often imperceptibly ratcheting up the tension, an extra guitar strum overdubbed, a barely audible organ/synth cranking under a chorus or bridge, or unexpected backups from current Ex-Vöid (and ex-Joanna Gruesome) vocalist Lan McArdle.

The Tubs are poised to take over your stereo - there's no point in resisting.
 
  • Tracklisting
  • 1.1. ILLUSION PT. II
  • 1.2. TWO-PERSON LOVE
  • 1.3. I DON'T KNOW HOW IT WORKS
  • 1.4. DEAD MEAT
  • 1.5. SNIVELLER
  • 1.6. DUPED
  • 1.7. THAT'S FINE
  • 1.8. ROUND THE BEND
  • 1.9. WRETCHED LIE