Twelve Clay Feet - More Naked Than Obscene

  by Dave Goodwin

published: 15 / 11 / 2013

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Review

‘More Naked Than Obscene’ is the second album from Cambridge's Twelve Clay Feet, and follows on from their debut album ‘Totem Bells’ which saw them pick up a cult following. Twelve Clay Feet started life in 2010 when twins Ian Jeffs (lead vocals) and Jay Jeffs (lead guitar) combined their talents with Ollie Porsa (bass) and Bob Radford (drums). They have been compared to the early Pearl Jam and Soundgarden, mostly because of Ian Jeffs' unique gruff vocals that meander through the well-built bass lines and driving guitars. This is a difficult one really. You know when you were a kid and you bought an album on the strength of hearing their current single, and then you got it home after studying the cover on the bus from top to bottom like some demonic scratch card owner, only to find that when you put needle to vinyl the rest of the album sounded nothing like it. ‘More Naked Than Obscene’ is a bit like that this one. It starts and ends with Twelve Clay Feet going down one road, and then deviating along the way. Which is no bad thing in my book. The opening track ‘By the Station Light’ goes full out with thick Pearl Jam style guitar, but then as you work your way through the tracks it changes and you're treated to some really strong, but more laidback numbers. ‘By the Station Light’ just seems to me to be a lot heavier than the rest of the album, and if you're one of those folk who listen to the first track and then decide what the album is like from that then you're going to miss out on the inside bits. It is a thundering full throttle blast of noise, which also draws them likenesses with the rockier side of the Kings of Leon. ‘ The third track ‘Hailstones’ is the first single from this classy sounding offering, and has some haunting but anthemic guitar work and harmonies drifting through it along with a great driving beat to boot! ‘Cities on Fire’ goes down a more sedate different path again with some great guitar riffs, as does the fantastic ‘Bigger Lungs’. ‘Wrecking Ball’ is straightforward rock and roll. ‘Last Rat in Hamelin’, the final track, is a racy affair to match the start, but with some ringing guitar twanging its way along. If I am to give one main criticism, sometimes it seems that Ian's powerful vocals are too strong for the track behind it and it needs tethering back slightly. Some might say this is a great rock album. And it is. The trouble is there are dozens of bands doing this kind of thing, although admittedly nowhere as good as this, Hopefully, therefore, it is one that should get them noticed a little more and lift them higher up the ladder, providing they don't get swallowed up by other bands going down the same road.

Track Listing:-

1 By the Station Light
2 You Can't Stop
3 Hailstones
4 Cities On Fire
5 Rags and Bones
6 Bigger Lungs
7 Wrecking Ball
8 The Debutante
9 Electric Pulse
10 Last Rat in Hamelin

Band Links:-

http://www.twelveclayfeet.com/
https://www.facebook.com/twelveclayfee
https://twitter.com/TwelveClayFeet
https://www.youtube.com/user/twelvecla