Fresh, Hard Edged & Thoughtful Rock
Hailing from Northampton, The Idiot Boy should not, of course, be confused with the poem from William Wordsworth, although there are indeed an in depth notion of life according to the said band, including the abilities of drummer Owen McLaren who can boast at being able to thump the skins all night without the fear of waking a living soul - mainly due to living right next door to a funeral parlour, now that’s rock'n'roll…
Okay, so to the music - first song, 'Eleanor' has more than a fleeting resemblance to the great band The Pixies, and it will be of no surprise that all three members are indeed big Pixies fans. There is a rawness to the sound of The Idiot Boy that is naively intriguing and gives the indie feel but with bags more talent. 'The Game' is another slice of The Pixies, however if you are starting to think that perhaps the band should change their name to a comical version of the Pixies and become a covers band, than you only have to listen to 'Staggered' which fires out of your speakers with the great lyrics, "She's got a tattoo on her wrist/ Says my father's 666/ The kinda girl who'll give you fits/ Hope she lines me up for the perfect hit", and the perfect hit is what I could see this band getting if they were to release this gem of an anthem.
'April' slows things down in a slightly folk/rock way in the style of highly underrated band The Crocketts, and the vocals of guitarist/singer Anthony Jewell is almost matching that of schizophrenic and hyperactive frontman-cum-crazy showman Davey McManus (now lead singer with Crimera).
The bouncing bass line from James Neville on 'Amy' is a pure joy to listen to. The brilliant and very English vocals make you want to embrace the song as your own and it becomes very addictive with each listen. There is a punkness with the quick beats, ruff-riffs and snarling vocals that get you ready to pump your fist along with whatever they sing about!
Elsewhere we have the thoughtful 'Hold On' but the best of the rest is, 'Sweet Angel Mine' which comprises of chugging guitars and catchy verses - a song that could also be a single and along side the corporate rubbish that is currently taking up far too many chart places, would over shadow this like Godzilla over a Gnats knackers...
The production is spot on with Max Reed (The Departure, Do Me Bad Things) understanding the importance of not over producing and taking away the raw edge of this highly talented threesome. Released on July 4th 2005 from the bands website (here) this is what music is all about with styles and influences of bands such as Husker-Du, Green Day, Nirvana, Smashing Pumpkins, and of course The Pixies, this could well be the first of many great albums!
Miss this album and miss a great treat...