Gorky's Zygotic Mynci - Sleep/Holiday
(Sanctuary)
No, that awkward title isn't the name of their latest single. It's more like separate titles for the A and B sides of this quirky Welsh band's eighth full length (there are also several albums' worth of material spread across nearly a dozen EPs). [And don't get me started on that name: just try "gor-keys zee-got-ik monkey" and don't ask what it means.] Recent albums have moved further away from their experimental beginnings as documented on their early recordings for Welsh indie, Ankst into more mainstream folk rock. Continuing that trend, the "Sleep" side opens with the harmonica-driven, "Waking For Winter" and the gorgeous slice of Americana a la Wilco and Golden Smog, "Happiness" before yielding to the scorching-yet-silly rocker, "Mow The Lawn," which manages to combine The Hives with The Kinks for a rollicking good time.
"Single To Fairwater" is a weepy, C&W ballad in the best tears-in-your-beer tradition. Here and throughout, the songs are highlighted by Megan Childs' weeping violin. "Shore Light" and "South of France" are twee, whispered ballads that tear a few pages out of the Arab Strap/Belle & Sebastian songbooks, while "Country" is an ear-catching combination of "Sweethearts"-era Byrds and the New Riders of the Purple Sage that captures the best of both bands. And as long as we're tossing country rock influences around, "Eyes of Green, Green, Green" bears more than a passing resemblance to Poco and The Flying Burrito Brothers, with a tastefully serene Childs' solo. Perhaps the best analogy would be to imagine what a C&W album as performed by Camper Van Beethoven would sound like.
Unfortunately, once we flip the album over to the "Holiday" side, things aren't as successful. The blatant Belle & Sebastian ripoffs, "Leave My Dreaming" and "Only Takes A Night," wouldn't be so bad if the Gorky's' brethren across the Scottish border hadn't already perfected the art of the melancholic ballad about half a dozen releases ago. And I'm sure they're not bucking to be referred to as the "Welsh Belle & Sebastian" or Arab Strap minus Aidan Moffat's potty mouth. Still, "Night"'s extended coda and the somber, wordless vocals and organ backing on "Pretty As A Bee" combine to make the perfect soundtrack to driving home on a cold, snowy evening. But at 91/2 minutes, "Bee" goes on about three minutes too long, and soon you'll think Sigur Ros was in the player. Finally, I can say without fear of contradiction that "Red Rocks" is the best impersonation of Low ever to come out of Wales. So, if you enjoy twee, melancholic C&W ballads from a band that's not afraid to wear their obvious influences on their sleeves, and can't wait for Mark Kozelek to finish that next Red House Painters' album, Sleep/Holiday (which, truth be told, should have been released as separate EPs with the final four tracks comprising the "Holiday" EP) is just the album for you.
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