Scott and Charlene's Wedding - Para Vista Social Club
by Anthony Strutt
published: 26 / 1 / 2013
Label:
Critical Heights Records
Format: CD
intro
Primitive, but superb garage rock on debut album from Scott and Charlene's Wedding, the solo project of Adelaide-born musician Craig Dermody
Scott and Charlene's Wedding is the solo project of Craig Dermody, a native of Adelaide who is now based in New York. ‘Para Vista Social Club’, his debut album, was originally released in a limited edition of just 200, which has now sold out. The songs present themselves here as diary confessions about real life situations. There are songs about crappy public transport, and several of these have train themes. The original covers were hand painted with each sleeve being different. This new issue, however, has a picture on its sleeve of a mountain in a dickie bow... so Craig has a sense of humour too. ‘Born to Lose’ opens the album, and has a raw and lo-fi sound. While normally music of this kind gets faster, here it seems to get slower and it is much more intense as a result. It is pretty limited in its drive, but its primitiveness works well. ‘Footscray Station’ has a 80’s garage band sound. It sounds, however, like Craig wants to escape the garage to rock your socks off. ‘Epping Line’ is one of the train-themed numbers, and sounds like a live band playing even though it is just Craig on everything, his slow chords cutting like a knife. ‘Rejected’ is like a sleazy and gloriously beautiful version of the Jesus and Mary Chain’s ‘You Trip Me Up’. ’Back in Town’ opens like a doom-laden version of Echo and The Bunnymen’s ‘Do It Clean’ , but is as jangly as the Raveonettes. The music is once more regressive, giving it a deeper sound. ‘Wiseman at the Station’ is a slow fuzz track and like a hypnotic Warlocks, its raw beauty sucking you in. ‘Rational’ has a rough-edged charm, while Craig’s vocal on it makes him sound like he has a sore throat. ‘Find a Way’ ends the album, way too soon for me. It is like an early REM number, with fuzzy bass and a driving drum pace. Its vocals get lost, but that’s fine, bringing to a conclusion a stunning piece of work, which is as essential as the early Libertines, and an album worth embracing.
Track Listing:-
1 Born to Lose2 Footscray Station
3 Epping Line
4 Rejected
5 Every Detail
6 Back in Town
7 Wiseman At the Station
8 Foreign Lands
9 Rational
10 Find a Way
Band Links:-
https://www.facebook.com/sacwmusichttps://scottandcharleneswedding.bandcamp.com/
Label Links:-
http://www.criticalheights.com/https://www.facebook.com/criticalheights/
https://twitter.com/criticalhigh
http://criticalnights.tumblr.com/
live reviews |
Shipping Forecast, Liverpool, 7/8/2013 |
Richard Lewis is riveted by Australian-formed but New York-based group Scott and Charlene's Wedding's shambolic but yet surprisingly tight brand of alternative rock at a show on their first UK tour at the Shipping Forecast in Liverpool |
reviews |
Mid Thirties Single Scene (2016) |
Fabulous third album from Scott and Charlene's Wedding, the project of Australian-born but now New York-based singer-songwriter Craig Dermody |
Karen/1 and 2 (2013) |
Any Port in a Storm (2013) |
Two Weeks EP (2013) |
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