My attempt to catch up with the ever-growing output of the prolific Not A Teepee collective continues, and we now come to an EP originally released in August, the grandly-titled James Graham, 1st Marquis of Montrose. Having this tragic historical figure as a theme for the record inspired a mainly sombre collection of tunes from the collective's contributors, the tone being set by the sinister white noise and spoken lyrics of Matricarians' opener Battle of Justice Mill. Sarah J Stanley's bleak but beautiful John's Gonna Write Me A Love Song is a modern folk ballad, with stunning vocals and an ever-so-slightly menacing synth drone, while Teepee newcomer Future Galloway serves up a slice of psychedelic surf-rock with You Can Break My Body But Not My Soul. Les Pelicans make yet another fine Teepee appearance with the gritty and groovy Royalty, and the ethereal folk-blues of Kitchen Cynics' Written On The Eve Of His Execution provides a nice shift in style on the penultimate track. The EP closes with the tender acoustics and haunting vocals of Not A Love Song by John Hekert, a jovial response, no doubt, to Sarah J Stanley's earlier assertion. James Graham... is another eclectic triumph for Not A Teepee, and also features a stunning cover from Dutch artist Sanne Oorebeek.
October saw the release of the thirteenth release by the Teepee collective, and marks two whole years since the beginning of this bi-monthly musical endeavour, a milestone which is worthy of recognition. It's appropriate that the release which marks their second anniversary should be characterised by such a varied range of approaches to a shared theme, for this variety has really been the chief strength of the collective as a musical unit over the last couple of years. The theme of Kids thus inspires the whimsical filth of The Bobbits' jaunty stomper Mr Wiggles, the unashamed fun of JD Russeau's (somewhat Deus-esque) nostalgia trip Awesome Space Quest, and the slow-burning folk leanings of Teej Kapowski's reinvention of a children's staple, Happy & U No It!. At the same time, the EP's theme is interpreted as a mournful story of young love by Matricarians' piano-led lament Little Sally Walker, a sonic rendering of pubescent awkwardness by Sarah J Stanley's unambiguously titled soundscape Periods and Boners, and a dreamlike evocation of childhood conveyed by the trembling falsetto of Kitchen Cynics' If I Was A Worm. Despite its myriad styles, Kids is a record that remains consistently satisfying throughout, and long may such eclectic and entertaining offerings be forthcoming from the contributors of the Not A Teepee collective. Here's to another two years!
As always, the collective's releases are available for streaming and free download from here.
As always, the collective's releases are available for streaming and free download from here.
