Album Review: Public Service Broadcasting - Inform-Educate-Entertain
- Written by Rob Crozier
Public Service Broadcasting are set to release their debut album Inform–Educate–Entertain in the coming month. In trying to describe their unique sound we are reminded of those Keep Calm and Carry On posters that have spawned masses of imitations in the last few years. Mix that with a throwback to the late 1980s cut and paste sounds of Coldcut and more recently Lemon Jelly and you start to understand what their sound is like.
The two piece band are obviously History boffins and they use a wonderful mixture of public information films, old Pathe news reals, archive clips, propaganda films and other assorted news clips. These snippets of newsreels then act as the lead vocals whilst being accompanied by a variety of different backing rhythms.
However it’s not all entirely sampled newsreels. The band consists of J. Willgoose, Esq on banjo and a cracking one man rhythm section in Wrigglesworth. However the band clearly has a love of the sample and their aim is simply “teach the lessons of the past through the music of the future”.
The second track on the album is a wonderful example of their method, entitled ‘Spitfire’ the duo pay homage to the legendry world war two fighter planes. The vast majority of the samples are lifted from the 1942 propaganda film, First of The Few. This creates a mini history lesson which at the same time keeps your head bobbing and the ‘feet a-tapping’.
There are darker tracks in the band's arsenal as well and the single ‘Signal 30’ takes some of its samples from driving information films. These are intertwined with some fine rock chords to forge a slightly worrying yet enjoyable track. We recommend not driving to it however as it may cause road rage. As the track states through its use of samples “You are driving a little too fast and have a false sense of confidence”. Their clever use of samples and Wrigglesworth's solid drumming is excellent, lending the track a rythym in keeping with the 'need for speed' evinced in the warnings scattered throughout it. This was released as a single on Record Store Day on a beautiful orange vinyl 7”.
The album builds into a mini educational film providing some thrilling, entertaining and funny pieces as well as displaying the variety needed to keep listeners engaged. The band are about to embark on an album tour where visuals and reels of old footage will entertain audiences with sound and vision.
Although this album has many interesting and almost unique qualities to it, you can’t help but wonder how the band can progress from this. If the audiences want more of the same it could prove hard to top. Although they won’t be stuck for material we feel that this is a wonderfully novel and clever album which works well but the jury is out on whether there is scope for more of the same (Bentley Rythym Ace spring to mind - Ed). For the moment though they have certainly lived up to the album's title and have informed, educated and entertained.
Inform-Educate-Entertain is released on May 6 and will be available from amazon
and iTunes.
