Horse

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Yeah. They're a bunch of jokers that Pussyfoot lot. Daddylonglegs is Howie B (ubiquitous producer type) and his mate Jeremy Shaw (guitar and analogue synth specialist). You can almost imagine the smoky pub talk which ended up with them putting out an album called Horse. Complete with tracknames like Pony Express, Giddy Up, Bareback, Stallion, Black Beauty and the rather salubriously titled They Shag Horses Don't They. They probably thought up the PR at the same time ("we could take a bunch of journos out to the races, ply them with drink, what a wheeze!!!"). You may laugh. They did, I was there. But just like an Austin Powers movie - the surface might look like a complete day-glo hued piss-take. But underneath there's much that's far from pony. Indeed. Pony Express - the opener - bristles with technonarchic energy. Building up layers along a one-note rhythm-riff, the scramble of dissonance is never far behind. While Giddy Up's farting synth humour complete with a bunch of lads interjecting with "Giddy Up" every now and then could put a listener off, the chunky funk-driven beat can't help but change your mind. Then there are delicate experimental soundscapes like Stallion which slings pebbles of unpredictable patterned samples across a lake of glazed melancholic sonics. Or the mysterious music-box swirling Bareback (nearly all of it sounds as if it's been recorded backwards) which glitters with high-pitched melodic decorations before descending into a louche funk number shot through with a strange dusty magic. Then there's the distored guitar-grinding Black Beauty which grips with tautly-tuned funk. Each and every track is like this - blending the experimental and warped with the sheer musical and rhythmical for maximum aural pleasure. Bet on this thoroughbred, or just saddle up, gallop the grooves and ride it all the way. Sorry. I know - there's no need for all that equestrian tomfoolery. There's only one thing you need to know. And that's that it's bloody good.