http://drownedinsound.com/releases/14491/reviews/4137551What
with Glasvegas and The Horrors taking the Mercurys by storm and the My
Bloody Valentine curated pre-Christmas ATP on course to be the fastest
selling event to date, now is definitely the time to be dusting off
those Creation 12-inches and proclaiming to have always had a shoegaze
element to your sound. Not that we're calling London-based indie
Northern Star bandwagon jumpers; on the contrary, as their Psychedelica trilogy of compilations, the first of which first saw the light of day back in early 2006, ably demonstrates.
What makes Revolution In Sound
that little bit different - and certainly more appealing than any of
its predecessors - is that here Northern Star have gone for quality
over quantity. While we're not suggesting the earlier Psychedelicas
were a mixed bag of aural delights and duff filler, indulging in the
whole package during one sitting could sometimes be heavy going at
best.
Thankfully, the diverse nature of the 17 acts compiled here means that we don't just get a carefully orchestrated collection of Loveless or Nowhere
clones by numbers. Instead, the label has obviously searched long and
hard to come up with the right mix of acts, some of whom you may be
familiar with, but most still fairly unknown outside of their own
backyards.
Having developed the label to the point
where they're no longer only issuing compilations of new bands,
Northern Star have also used Revolution In Sound to showcase five of their own discoveries, most notably Swedish outfit Youngteam,
whose 'Introducing Mr Gladstone' is as a song in three parts not too
dissimilar from Mew in their earliest, more dynamic phase. Labroratory Noise also merit a mention, their deceptive 'You Created A Storm' echoing Primal Scream's visionary XTRMNTR phase before turning into the bastard son of Godflesh at the flick of a switch (or should that be touch of a pedal?).
Of those already in the spotlight, erstwhile Leeds fuzzpoppers The Manhattan Love Suicides provide an ample reminder of why their recent split was sadly premature on former single 'Clusterfuck', Cardiff trio The Voices bring the spirit of Lush into the 21st Century on 'When The Black Sun Sets', and Boston five-piece The December Sound
simply ask the question 'why aren't we famous yet?' via the distortion
heavy fug of 'No Heaven Like Hell', a dizzy highlight off last year's
criminally ignored Silver long player.
Add to this schizoid electronica from Delicasession and Punk TV, evocative guitar-led krautisms from London's Kontakte and indiscriminate anthems courtesy of Nottingham's Mint Ive
and you have a collection that has something for everyone, regardless
of which era or sub-genre of the whole shoegaze phenomenon floats your
boat.
Having previously introduced the likes of God
Is An Astronaut and The Black Angels to a wider audience, the smart
money is on this A&R man's wet dream having a similar impact for
some of the artists here. Let the revolution commence...