Simpatico
For those complaining about the lack of longevity from modern rock bands, we point you to The Charlatans UK. Sixteen years and nine studio albums into their career,Simpaticofinds these Northwich baggy veterans not quite at the top of their game, but endeavouring to drag their groove-led Hammond rock sound into intriguing new territories. Most interesting is an apparent influence of dub reggae on the traditional Charlatans sound, an influence that crops up on the coolly cynical "For Your Entertainment" and again on "City Of The Dead", a ska-tinged harmonica lament accompanied by haunted backing vocals that harks back to the urban decay of The Specials’ "Ghost Town". Less successful is "NYC (There’s No Need To Stop)"--an apparent stab at the voguish Big Apple punk-disco as practised by LCD Soundsystem, but one that suffers from clumsy execution, and isn’t helped along by frontman Tim Burgess’ rather clichéd lyrics: "Underground counterculture/Eat you up like a hungry vulture". Newcomers will find The Charlatans’ back catalogue a more rewarding place to start, but fans will be delighted there’s more toSimpaticothan simple organ-riffing retread.--Louis Pattison