Cricket In Times Square - Cricket In Times Square

  by Jonjo McNeill

published: 17 / 11 / 2004

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Review

When receiving new music to review, my first task is always to take it out for a walk so I can absorb it in unfamiliar surroundings. When I tried this with A Cricket In Times Square I was forced to stop exactly where I was for the next three hours. It's difficult to say what is so enthralling about this band. I don't know If It's that you can barely hear the vocals. Or that the songs go up and down and back again more than the level of alcohol in George Best's blood. Or that they've made six songs last almost forty minutes. Or maybe It's just because it sounds absolutely incredible in a way nothing else has ever sounded absolutely incredible. There's no real comparisons to other bands I can make. Maybe they owe a passing nod to My Bloody Valentine. And they should probably buy a few drinks for Spacemen 3. But they play their own unique style of music in their own unique way. As If music hadn't been made before. 'Careless' is a sky-scraping indie anthem, and is close in ambition to what Doves aim for, only this aims (and hits) higher. Dreamy vocals tell of total apathy, wailing guitars fight for attention, and the drummer makes us wait six minutes for a crescendo he starts building up when you press play. It's beautiful. '5 1/2 Minute Hallway' is bigger on atmosphere, and has a slight touch of the Joy Divisions about it. It's very difficult for me to convey the bands message, as I couldn't hear a bloody word they were saying, but the pace and scope of the music speaks volumes. 'Mourning Son' is a pop song, it actually made me think of 'Sally Cinnamon' era Stone Roses. It's every bit as important sounding as they were then. a brief punk interlude comes in the shape of 'Everything Known About Medicine' and we realise we're listening to the American Spiritualized. 'Blood From Heaven' goes back to the Stone Roses influence before the beautiful, epic 'Outliving Your Shadow' brings us to the end. Or rather it should, but I found myself repeatedly repeating it. Whilst I mentioned several bands in this piece, A Cricket In Times Square really do sound peerless. This is a fantastic collection of music, and It's only cheap so there's absolutely no excuse to not get it. Go on, get it now

Track Listing:-

1 Careless
2 5 1/2-Minute Hallway
3 Mourning Son
4 Everything Known About Medicines
5 Blood From Heaven
6 Outliving Your Shadow