Gerry Mitchell And Little Sparta - Scalpel Slice

  by Adam Wood

published: 23 / 12 / 2005

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'Scalpel Slice' is a quite remarkable and unusual record. The poetry of former Photographer of the Year Gerry Mitchell is coupled with the delicate yearnings of multi-national post rockers Little Sparta to create a highly innovative and finely balanced mini album. Named after Scottish artist Ian Hamilton Finlay and featuring some brilliant guest violin work from Susie Honeymoon of the Mekons, Little Sparta have all the wistful beauty of Low on finest form and the haunting build up of Explosions in the Sky, most notably on the eponymous first track. Mitchell’s poetry is used to great effect, his dismay at the habitats of the Scottish urban poor on ‘Skyscraper Housebound’ is greatly enhanced by the John Cale-esque violin work that scrapes along in the background like a tramp pushing a shopping trolley past the rambling poet. His sentiments are similar on ‘Carefully Constructed Ruins’ a hymn to “Burnt out cars, burnt out people,” Mitchell’s thick and aggressive Scottish accent juxtaposing with the musical wake that rumbles beneath him. In all 'Scalpel Slice' is a truly exciting and original record that follows in the footsteps of the Velvet Underground’s spoken word experimentation, whilst taking John Cooper Clarke and DoMakeSayThink along for the ride.

Track Listing:-

1 Scalpel Slice
2 Ruins
3 Mocking Mirror
4 Skyscraper Housebound
5 Carefully Constructed Ruin
6 I See Life (Instrumental)
7 Even The Saints

Label Links:-

https://twitter.com/firerecordings
https://www.facebook.com/Firerecords
http://www.firerecords.com/
https://firerecords.bandcamp.com/
https://instagram.com/fire_records/
https://www.youtube.com/user/FirerecordsUK

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