Ginger • Market Harbour
Ginger has taken some time out from his many projects such as The Wildhearts in order to release this solo effort “Market Harbour”. Ginger has been making brilliant music for a long time now and this album came with high expectations.
Upon first listening to the album it is somewhat confusing and bitty despite the fact that it contains no stops between the 21 tracks contained on this CD. This may be due to the fact that it cannot be categorized or dissected easily without deep and thoughtful listening.
The Album contains tracks such as opener “Casino Bay” which gives a positive and up-beat opening to the album but with closer inspection speaks of deeper troubles and represents a sadness which is cleverly transformed into determination. The album is full of changes in style, tempo, dynamics and meaning. It is a mixed bag of music which Ginger has somehow linked together using weird snippets of sound, from space age sounds to other weird and wonderful effects.
Simply picking up this album and listening to a random track will certainly do it no justice as it is a complete piece which has been put together as it is for a reason. Many of the songs I find highly enjoyable including “Attentionette”, “Soap Hammer” and “How Hard Can You Make It?” which are great tracks. I do however find that I have to sit down and listen to this album and concentrate on the content which Ginger has composed. In many places it does just seem a little weird, such as “You And Me (That's What I Want)” which is an up-beat track containing nearly two minutes of children singing and laughing. Some people may listen to this and find it uplifting and funny, others I feel may find it strange and a little off putting.
It is clear to see that Ginger is a massive talent in music and has many ideas about the music he wants to write. Most of these ideas are included on this album and it is great to see that someone with a creative mind has taken music and really been brave with it. Some of it may seem weird, some may seem like it just doesn’t fit into the context of the album, but Ginger has gone and put it in anyway because it is music he wants to write and this fact has made Ginger what he is. This album is varied, diverse and challenging and at the right time, a pleasure to listen too.