MATCHING MOLE

Despite not being a perfect album, I think everyone should own Matching Mole's debut just to be in possession of "O Caroline". If ever a more sincere love song was written I have not heard it. It's a song dominated by keyboards, with piano, mellotron flute, and organ laying the background to Wyatt's fragile voice. This instant classic gives way to "Instant Pussy" and we see the album take a jazzier and more typical Canterbury direction (with the usual traces of Avant present in Wyatt's works). Besides the first three tacks (If you can count "Instant Pussy" as having vocals) the rest of the album is instrumental. This seems like a strange choice to me given the caliber of Wyatt's vocal work. I would have much preferred to hear him more on the album.

I don't know if the post-"Signed Curtain" tracks were composed or not, but they certainly sound like jamming to me. And like most jamming it's pretty much hit or miss. A lot of it is miss to me though. I have no problem with jamming, but I just don't think Matching Mole touches on anything exceptional in their journey though it certainly gets side tracked a few times. Toward the end of the album I start to become somewhat disillusioned before "Immediate Curtain" ends the album on a little bit of a high note.

A good album, but Wyatt has done much better.