Tuesday 5 January 2010

Charlie Barnard – Hallucinations and Delusions

Skyeyesea Records reissues Charlie Barnard’s debut album, after putting out his most recent, Ivory Serpents & The Starving Tree. Charlie sneers his way through opening track Childhood’s End, a song that’s as intimidating and end of the world as the title would suggest. It’s a brooding fuzzy thing, never lifting its head from its slumbers, taking pot shots from below. Alison My Queen Of Diamonds is Miles Hunt style snarly acoustic, while She’s Friends With Fairies is a little less in your face, a neat psychedelic hum. Regrets Of A Spaceman is Babylon Zoo post fame comedown, while Candy Flip and Rona mark the loss of the sneer, and are much more interesting albeit straight forward acoustic tunes. Sundial is hazy psychedelic, showing the album to be getting better as it goes on. It’s more a vibe than a song, but works really well, soaking into your mind and psych. Oblivion ramps it up from there and completes the album with some fuzzy guitar and intricate picking.


Hallucinations and Delusions is out now on Skyeyesea Records. Although according to their website they have now ceased to be. Best go through Charlie's myspace to find out more, here.

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