Chris T-T - Love Is Not Rescue
Legendary Brit-fuzz songster unveils latest longplayer.
Prolific musician, socialist blogger and with a degree in popular music, Christopher Thorpe-Tracey is a man of many talents. He's honed these skills into a vast selection of albums and has worked with a host of artists such a Turin Brakes, British Sea Power and Ben Folds, all of whom share a fondness for his lo-fi acoustic vignettes. He also shares not only labels with Frank Turner but also a similar sound, though a little more mellow and self deprecating. This idiosyncratic approach works well on single ‘Nintendo’, a pleasant tune about the daily grind. On others tracks such as the dangerously titled ‘Stop Listening’ and ‘Elephant in the Room’, his self referencing become a little too annoying. Any cringeworthy lyrics are always saved by T-T's knack for a catchy chorus, though.
The production really is the best thing about this album, swathing T-T’s voice with a dreamy warm fuzz of instrumentation and emotional atmospherics. The piano also sounds lovely, particularly on ‘Tall Woman’, which is gentle but heartfelt in its execution. The style of the album rarely changes too much from song to song, so if you find one tune's pleasant to the ears then the whole album might just be worth investigating. It's a record that could divide opinion - some may love its relationship/life subject nature, others might deride it as a little bit lightweight. Both sides would have a point. As for making a record full of simple catchy pop gems with shades of the late Alex Chilton and the melon collie of the Pumpkins, this will do just fine.
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