FOR GIRLS WHO GROW PLUMP IN THE NIGHT

Okay, Canterbury is another musical neighborhood I don’t wander into very often, but now that I’m here it has become pretty apparent where one of my more modern fave bands got a lot of their ideas (Super Furry Animals). I always thought of them as some sort of fresh and innovative bunch of self- amusing artists, but after playing this album a half-dozen times or so I can hear far too many similarities to think they are coincidences. Nothing wrong with that, it’s just that I didn’t expect Caravan to sound like this. I remember the album titles back in my teen days, but these guys never made much of an impression on America back then so I really don’t know their music much.

This was an album I picked up recently, and solely because of the too-clever title (and album cover), plus also because I just had to hear what it was the dog was doing again. The sense of humor here rides a line between droll and sophomoric, which is to say that I love it.

David Sinclair and Rupert Hine are the pivotal keys to making these tracks work in my opinion. The keyboards and synth parts are exceptional, and the easy flow of the tempo of each song is very polished. And the clarinet and various saxophones on “Be alright / Chance of a Lifetime” make this my favorite track. In addition, the way the band integrates the various orchestral instruments into the sound without making them sound like cheesy attempts at faux symphonic additions is quite brilliant. There is also more than a little of this band’s sound in the three Tangent albums I own. It seems that Caravan has only been a secret kept from me all these years, nobody else. I must hear more of this band.

I don’t know what more to say about this album except that the easy flow of each track makes listening to them a true pleasure, and the melodic nature of the music overall caught me a bit by surprise since my only previous exposure to Canterbury has been the considerably less melodic Gong. This is an exceptional album and one that has a legitimate place on most progger’s shelves. Easily four stars and highly recommended.

peace