P
ennan Brae has a very individual style, a blend of the Stones heyday with late seventies Power Pop. Picked is part two of a The Garden Series and follows on from Planted that appeared late last year. I reviewed that album and had a chat with Pennan in November.
The standard on Picked is well up the one set on Planted, and they are very much two sides of the same coin. Harmonies from Alison Jenkins are more prominent on songs like ‘Shimmy’ and ‘Super Storm’. Not coincidentally ‘Super Storm’ is one of the strongest songs here. Of the songs that haven’t appeared as singles, ‘Domino’ with it’s seventies guitar and ‘4 to the Floor’ are the standout. In fact the second half of the album gathers pace like a snowball running downhill. ‘Acquiescing’ (not even remotely related to Oasis) again features Alison Jenkins harmonies. It’s her vocals that provide the unity to this album. There is no ‘Long Bomb Deep Calm’ at the end as a more relaxed closer. ‘5 foot 2’ just keeps the pace up with Edward Whelan’s drums driving to song home. Whelan and Brae’s long-time collaborator, producer and Bass player Kaj Falch-Nielsen are the ideal rhythm section. They keep the groove solid and leave the fancy stuff alone. If you want an object lesson in why Rock and Roll drumming needs nothing more than Charlie Watts gave it then listen to ‘5 foot 2’, with its irresistible backbeat.
Once again Brae has kept the album to ten songs rather than following the trend for stuffing albums with as many songs as possible to maximise streaming. This highlights the Retro feel further with a get in, get it done and get out mindset that all the best pop albums have. I love his guitar sound, not too distortion filled but just dirty enough to roughen the sound up. His writing is best described as quirky. This is a good thing, and much like his films once you get the way his mind works, and the wit in his words you will be a committed fan.
If you haven’t seen his two films ‘2 Below 0’ ‘The Astronot’, which stream on Amazon Prime then seek them out, especially The Astronot. With five albums in eighteen months, how much more can we expect from him? Hopefully lots as the quality shows no sign of waning.
Out on Bandcamp along with his other releases. If you buy Picked then you will need Planted as well…
