Maxwell Farrington & Le Superhomard return with the duo's third album, this time recorded in Margate Kent the perfect place for an Australian and French duo to gain inspiration. Maxwell Farrington & Le Superhomard Aka Christophe Vaillant are joined by Lily Buchanan, Loic Maurin, Mike Lindsay and Raven Bush. Produced by Mike Lindsay, recorded at M.E.S.S in Margate & SuperHomard Studio France, strings recorded by Raven Bush in Margate and mixed by Mike Lindsay
The album opens with the outer space chamber pop sounds of Brussel Sprouts talking to Maxwell from deep inside his fridge, he has a late night craving for those Brussel Sprouts, please don't ask what drugs he's on to induce such cravings, it needs a full string section and 70's style laid back synths to fully explain, his unnatural urges under that sky.
Window Tax is one of the few taxes not to be resurrected in recent times, this song however is about Maxwell's talents in the kitchen and the food he wants to make for you and anyone else asking for reservations, this sounds like a super sophisticated meal, with a nice drop of Chablis. He will even dine with you and turn his mobile off, what a gent.
Rats And Dolphins are what you might see if you end up at a run down Dolphinarium, this sounds like it should be on the soundtrack of a 70's European bucolic television series like Belle & Sebastian, encased in string, rich backing vocals with a sense of grace and beauty that rats don't normally exhibit.
Euphoria has an end of pier feel, for a jaunty dancehall song about divine paperbacks enchanting the lovers, drawing them together, even if bouncing severed heads doesn't sound like a winning strategy in the games of love.
Lorene is a song of love and desire, replete with strings a delightful piano line staring at those broken traffic lights, forever stuck on red, while you try to find a way to get to Lorene once more, waiting at the bus stop dreaming of Divine Comedies and grand romantic chambers of love.
Do Da Da Da (with Lily Buchanan) a duet that references Bach and Beethoven, within its classical aspirations, the almost Wurlitzer organ swelling beneath the rich vocals, strings gazing at the moon once more, lovers continue the baroque dance to the ships horns in the distance.
Supermarket at least they don't get lost, like The Clash did, this is more Noel Coward abandoned to improvise in a Spar, dreaming he's actually in Waitrose, in awe at some of the amazing produce he can see, even if he gets all trolley rage at the other shoppers, the music is so chilled out no one can get angry that someone had the last tin of sardines, a real suburban melodrama, this is quite magnificent, synths and strings take you on a cloud to the tills, freedom through the miracles of orchestral sophistication. Good Company a nice time together with the piano and a love for life.
The Architect might want to build with bricks, while sounding like they are Golden Brown, it's never a frown reworking and building this new modernist masterpiece, when perhaps we should go back to wattle and daub, floating through the ages.
Fish And Chips (Feat Lilly Buchanan) opens with the line I need a tooth out, I don't know which one that grabs the attention, making you listen to this marvellous twisted tale, Bacharach like backing, is Lily the dentist or does she eat with him instead, in among the sumptuous sounds the most humble of foods is described. This needs serious airplay.
Gap Year they are going gadding about, free and easy visions of adventures in the atmosphere of Modesty Blaise (The band), the pains of too much serenading, the poor chap. The album closes with Cake as they love having a slice of cake and cuppa Rosie sitting on the front, another melodrama unfolds, that is almost in Tindersticks territory but thankfully not so bleak conclusion to a quite wonderfully sophisticated album.
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