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Creeping Jean release feel-good single, Fluorescent Orange Skies
Watch the video for Creeping Jean’s new single Fluorescent Orange Skies, which’ll have you wanting to head somewhere sunny immediately…
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Album review: Creeping Jean – When’s The Blowout?
Retro fetishists Creeping Jean polish up vintage sounds to uniquely impressive effect on debut album...
- Words:
- Steve Beebee
It must be ace being friends with Creeping Jean. If these chic rock n’ rollers came round your house you’d want them in the back garden so the neighbours could check out how cool they – and by association, you – are. First surprise is that they’re not from Nashville or Los Angeles, but Brighton. Yes, Brighton, England. And unlike most new bands, Creeping Jean didn’t take out a loan to make this album; they funded it by selling shoes ‘from their vintage fashion shop’. Oh yes, Creeping Jean have one of those.
Other stuff they have is talent, attitude, poise and swagger. Check out the dynamism of their songwriting; their spacious but glam-inclined minglings of menace and melody. Their songs – most of them, at least – are tales of the unexpected. Changes of pace, subtle blasts of organ, hooks that you’re not really anticipating. Given a proper listen, these songs work their svelte magic – they’re fun like The Struts, and have cleverly honed quirks that are clearly the result of honest, artistic chemistry.
Warm & Fuzzy is a highlight; buzzsaw guitars cavort with Robert Whale’s keyboards, while Olly Tooze’s killer hooks are the sort that get audiences moving. Its one of the best three-minute chunks of pure rock n’ roll distilled this year. Get Yer Ears On This is stark and to the point, but still manages to mix rock, funk and old school blues, while Desert Sauce is a cheeky tale of lust with a suitably infectious hook. In contrast, Fluorescent Orange Skies walks wistfully in sun-soaked languor and the title track makes cool use of melody and pace, its eccentric tunefulness taking us into the territory of new wave legends Talking Heads. “I need a different record; I cant live on repeat,” Olly declares in the latter.
If you’re with him on that, this could be the record you’re looking for.
Verdict: 4/5
For Fans Of: Rival Sons, The Doors, The Struts
When’s The Blowout? is released on April 29 via Mature Charlton