Ivory Springer - 32 Points On A Compass

  by Anthony Dhanendran

published: 28 / 3 / 2004

Label: Purr
Format: CD

intro

Eclectic post-punk from Bristol outfit, Ivory Springer, which soon shakes off its Shellac influences, "to settle down into a more melodic, laid-back vibe"

Having been a feature on the music scene in Bristol and Bath for a couple of years, Ivory Springer unleash their fury on the rest of the country with their debut album. The word that people seem unable to resist including when talking about them is ‘Shellac’, the name of uber-producer Steve Albini’s pioneering post-punk outfit. While it’s true that Ivory Springer are more than a little reminiscent of Shellac – and it would be a surprise if Albini wasn’t high on their list of influences – there’s more to them than just copying. The opening tracks of the album, ‘Fifteen Minute Song’ and ‘The Submariner Song’, do sound like Shellac. They both toy with the listener to stir things up: ‘Fifteen Minute Song’ is in ¾ time, a rarity in popular music, particularly at the punk end. The second track plays with timing by adding seemingly random pauses to the chugging guitar riffs. After getting the Seattle influences out of their systems, the band seem to settle down into a more melodic, laid-back vibe, reminiscent – at times – of Aereogramme’s crystal chainsaw riffs. It threatens to get a tiny bit samey towards the end, but given that that end is only 28 minutes from the beginning, it’s too much of a rollercoaster to be able to get bored while listening to it. The album is only rescued from fading away, though, by the hidden track tacked on to the end. A spare, instrumental, post-rock ode, it lays on the textures, allowing the band’s gift for melody, craft and ability to truly shine through.

Track Listing:-