Chris Helme returns to bring class back to Brit-rock with the release of his second solo album, The Rookery. Muddled brilliantly with a combination of folk, rock, blues, noise-rock and psychedelia, as well as various combination of them all, it’s an album that sounds like no other while doffing its cap to some of the best.
Opening track Pickled Ginger is a folk acoustic instrumental with shades of the Wicker Man soundtrack, and while it goes on to be pierced a bit too jarringly by the vocal levels of Longway Round, it works as a great introduction of everything that is about to come.
Longway Round takes a while to get into it in it’s entirety, and you might never be sure of the high pitch vocals that kick in at times, but the subtle inflections of the verse are as addictive as Tetris with Nicotine infused level completion patches, especially the genius line, “super-soaker in a black old bar”.
Folk and blues come together well on Darkest Days before Plane breaks expectations with a Latin intro and a strings-led drawn-out drawl infused pre-chorus and chorus.
It’s a break that sets up the psych-rock genius of The Spindle And The Cauldron. It’s got heavy hooks, darkened lyrics and fleeting drones. Like the love child of Jefferson Airplane, The Velvet Underground and Them Crooked Vultures!
Blindeye sounds a bit like low-key Jack White and could have easily been the missing track from Blunderbuss. Twisting and gnarled around Helme’s husked blues vocals, it shuts down to the sound of electronic whales singing. The blues beat continues with style on Pleased, that pulls in rock guitar ska to add crunch to the all too fleeting dropping melody and surfed-up sounds, before piling on the distorted clench of the midway riff.
Dadies Farm has got airplay written all over its easy charm with tales of daddy’s girl wonder and a chantathon chorus.
Summer Girl is an acoustic gem for lazy August nights out in the grass, which stands in contrast to the acoustically backed introspection of Set In Stone. Both of which add layers and more depth to the latter third of The Rookery and lead in well to the sheer pull of the brilliant closing track, Good To Be In Love. Psych-folk and string arrangements with perfect weighting underpin great vocals that spin out lyrical wonder of being in love one more time.
Chris Helme, The Rookery review: 4.5/5
