Rather like trying to stuff a Polar Bear into a Matchbox car, it's pretty safe to say that Manchester's bruisingly brilliant Psych-rock travellers OCEANSIZE were never really designed with such trivialities as 'singles' in mind.
However, as the cold hard light of day dawns, there's business to attend to, so here's "Catalyst" from their tremendous debut album "Effloresce" after some judicious nipping and tucking (it definitely didn't require the Botox) and - d'you know what? - it still works really effectively. There's still the swinging, scrapyard drums, the initial riffs that sound like a Chieftain tank revving, before the band hit the gas and lunge forward with that gorgeous counterpoint harmonic guitar stuff they do so well bleeding effortlessly. Sure, Mike Vennart's vocal comes in much quicker, but the editing hasn't robbed the original of its' stealthy intent or tight poise and - even in truncated form - "Catalyst" gets this writer's thumbs up, big style.
Besides, the live version of album favourite "Women Who Love Men Who Love Drugs" on the flip, is worthy of attention in its' own right. This is Oceansize free of restriction and beautifully recorded from the soundboard and shows the extent of their capabilities.
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It's an awesome flex of the muscles too. A tour de force for the band's three guitars, it's initially windswept, yearning and featuring the kind of delicious, molten guitars your reviewer had almost forgotten about since Kitchens Of Distinction split and then, as the momentum builds, the whole band lock horns and go for the burn. To say it's breathtaking is something of an understatement.
Oceansize are entirely removed from the traditional indie pop slush slowly gurgling down the drain. They are massively impressive musically and volcanic emotionally. Yeah, you can mock the lengthy tracks, the pastoral passages and waffle about Prog all you want, but it's your loss if you do. The sensible are wising up. "Catalyst" is a major change giver.
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