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The Clientele - Minotaur

Oh dear. The Clientele have lost their way within these eight tracks; given where the bull torsoed chap of Greek mythology lived the overall title is therefore very apt. This is a poor effort when compared to their sublime Bonfires On the Heath from 2009, which is quite some feat in itself as the overall sound is still noticeably their signature one. The general writing though is not up to the previous standard and indeed if it was announced that these were actually originally rejects from the earlier release it would make perfect sense.

 

The title track sets the tone for the whole effort right from the beginning with it's lack of depth. 'Gerry', apart from the enlivening solo about a minute from the end, is about as interesting as the Gus Van Sant film of the same name, itself a pointless wander around some salt-flats. 'As The World Rises And Falls' is a plod-a-thon that wouldn't sound out of place in an elevator. The band's homage to French Symbolist Paul Verlaine would benefit greatly from an infusion of some of the late poet's brand of decadence, or at the very least a good slug of absinthe.

Fifth song 'Strange Town' is actually so unnoticeable that it fails to register and 'No. 33' is a lifeless instrumental. The penultimate track though takes the biscuit. If you've ever bought any of the Late Night Tales mix series you'll know they all close with a spoken word track that after the second or third time you put the album on you no longer bother to listen to. 'The Green Man' is such a track. Five minutes of wittering about some either drunken or supposedly mystical encounter with the spirit of ancient rural England on the site of a new development. Dire.

Proceedings come to a close with 'Nothing Here Is What It Seems', which includes a line that neatly encompasses the whole endeavour – "I'm just a shadow of myself". What's actually gone wrong I've no idea but you'd be far better off avoiding this and purchasing the aforementioned 2009 release.

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