Deckard - Dreams Of Dynamite And Divinity

  by John Clarkson

published: 26 / 3 / 2004

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Deckard's predecessor Baby Chaos were briefly tipped for the top in the mid 90's. They released two albums, 'Safe Sex, Designer Drugs and the Death of Rock 'n' Roll' (1995) and 'Love Your Self Abuse' (1997) on Warner Brothers, but, despite the eye-catching titles of these albums, and being heaped with critical praise, they were never picked up upon by the public at large. The group, which consists of vocalist and guitarist Chris Gordon, guitarist Grant McFarlane, bassist Bobby Dunn and drummer Gen Matthews, and which comes from Stewarton, a former colliery town 20 miles South of Glasgow, renamed themselves as Deckard in 1999. An album, 'Stereodreamscene' (2000) followed, and once again came out on Warners, but when they that too failed to take off, the band found themselves dropped. Now, after three years away, they have returned with a second album, 'Dreams of Dynamite and Divinity', which this time they have put out on their own Deckard label. While Deckard have at last been able to make a record exactly on their own terms, always a grumbling point in the past, it is a pity that, without the clout of a large label behind them this time, and reduced to releasing the record entirely by their own means, the majority of the people that will search out 'Dreams of Dynamite and Divinity' will probably already be commited and hardcore fans. It is a big record with a big sound, and makes an absolutely exhilarating 45 minutes. Its ten tracks are segued one into another, breathlessly without pause. Its surging, boisterous guitars and drums which crackle like gunfire are whipped up to create a symphonic, grandiose storm. Chris Gordon's gusty vocals are similarly exuberant, but also hard-hitting. 'To Your Soul' is written from the point of view of a transsexual struggling to come to changes in her body, while the protagonist of 'Be Nobody Else' has to face up to the fact that his girlfriend who is in a coma probably won't get better. 'Say Something Stupid' and 'Fall Down at Their Feet' both tell of the sex wars. Perhaps the most obvious musical comparision here is Radiohead, with whom they share a similar off-kilter lyricism and sense of super-melodism. Yet, while Thom Yorke and co. often slide into the trappings of rock star angst and miserabilism, one senses from the overall exuberance of this record that Chris Gordon and his characters, whatever is thrown at them, will somehow claw back and survive. The clean-cut Rush of the 80's and 90's, whose concerns were similarly worldly, but again equally life-affirming, are a far better likeness. The last track, the brazen I Dream of Dynamite' confirms all this and finds Gordon, down on his luck, but, like his band, still planning to create ripples and make explosions. This is music to punch your fist in the air to, to jump up and down to, and to throw yourself around the room to. Divine indeed, and dynamite most certainly !

Track Listing:-

1 To Your Soul
2 We're Aching
3 When Picking Fights
4 Be Nobody Else
5 Holy Rolling
6 Say Something Stupid
7 Fall Down At Their Feet
8 Wired For This
9 Grace's Estate
10 I Dream Of Dynamite

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