Incredibly, the band Now have been plying their charming trade for the last twenty years or so, and yet every release sounds so fresh and imbued with the joy of a band that have just started playing together.
The not quite fey vocals and gentle, arthritic beat of opener “I’m Sure That Rest Will Make You Feel Better” are joined by toytown keyboards to produce an effect that would not have been out of place on Sarah Records. It is an influence that follows through onto “Fill Up The Gap”, but although influences are apparent, they somehow manage to inhabit their very own world, one with very little fuss that is stripped back to an unhurried minimalism.
So I thought I had their number until halfway through ‘Her Voice/My Ears” a definite groove is introduced and things suddenly grow decidedly funky and repetitive. The drummer is really classy here, adding sweet little fills that are kind of cheeky, but show him as leading this admittedly low-key charge. Just to prove a point to me as a lazy listener making too many assumptions, next track “Biscuita” comes on like a low-fi Camera, all motorik groove, but clean keyboard lines that are the essence of simplicity with just a little synth texture draped across the track’s little shoulders like the earth tones of a charity shop cape. Justin Paton‘s vocals are generally offhand and sometimes a little off-key, but it doesn’t detract from them at all, and the patchwork effect of “Strong Urge” with the instruments stitching the song together without stepping on each others’ toes is lovely. I can’t tell if the drums are real on some of the tracks and the bedroom vibe of “Thoughts Again” brings to mind Robert Sotelo. Once again, I think I have them and then they throw the modern R&B groove of “Crackin’ The Shell” down to really freak me out. Hip, distorted vocals are delivered in a semi-rap which I didn’t see coming, and the squelchy instrumental kids’ theme of “I Don’t Look Forward To The Day When I Have To Throw This Jumper Away” rounds out a decidedly quirky but irresistible side one.Side two of Gold Star Lavender Marriage opens equally insistently, with Justin’s voice a little further back in the mix on the motorik “Petro Twig”, while “Shit Zoo” couldn’t be any less well named, with more minimalist instrumental fun; the strained, cheap keyboards so simple yet so effective. You have the feeling that they want the songs to have a bit more groove on this side and are allowed more time to unfurl; the heartbeat synth and warm, contented vocals of “Leaves” become dreamy and hypnotic, while wood blocks are added to “Nachspiel” for a little texture.
Once again, just as I think I have them, after the experimental and self-evident “Arp”, final track “People” finds Justin discussing his anxiety about the state of folks in the modern age over a celestial keyboard motif and a sub-techno beat. His voice here, considering the concerning subject matter, is delivered in the trippiest, worry-free manner and then just like that, the album is over and Now have woven their magic spell and drawn you into their soft-focus world. Give Gold Star Lavender Marriage a try, I dare you not to be seduced.-Mr Olivetti-
