Reviews:: Ceti Alpha Telemetry

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* I should point out that the record lists 18 tracks on the cover, but there are only 12 songs and they are labeled wrong, so I might have got a few track names wrong.

If I had to give any band some advice, I’d recommend starting your record with an infectious bass line. A well plucked bass makes people pay attention, so when the Ceti Alpha record – Telemetry - explodes out of the blocks with the head bopping bass line and Nick Bevan-John’s Stephen Merritt-ish vocals on Wind City Wind, you just want to keep listening. I would have been happy to listen to the classic combination of sounds for a few more minutes without question, but the cacophony of chaos that evolves from the straightforward beginnings is like the cherry on your sundae. Bevan-John and his band add fuzz and a sense of disarray that constantly threatens to knock the pop song off course and really makes you wonder what else the band has got in store.

But for the most part, Bevan-John is a fan of clarity and simplicity. The melancholy of the Loneliest Man Alive makes terrific use of a tambourine and guitar, but shines the spotlight directly on Nick’s voice. Blue Skies drives forward with cymbal crashes and a nice hook. Even when they use new instruments or textures – like the piano and female backing vocals on Working For the Devil or the mandolin on Darkside Hill - every note is crystal clear and they never cloud the mix. The succinct sounds really help the listener settle into the punchy riffs and help you relate to Bevan-John’s vocals.

Telemetry is a solid listen from start to finish, and shows Ceti Alpha exposing some tried and true influences but not relying on them. The brooding darkness of 8 Track shows Nick tipping his hat to Robert Smith and Conor Oberst, where as She Went Over is a crazy mesh of garage rock and piano pop – but they handle the challenge effortlessly. Every track seems to fit perfectly into the flow of the record and rests easily within their reach. More importantly, Ceti Alpha never come off as derivative. The sadness that guides Sparrow channels Jens Lekman, but the band spikes the pace with mandolin, cello, cymbal work and some keys to transform the classic sounding riff into something completely new.

If you asked me to guess where Nick Bevan-John calls home, Dartmouth is probably close to the last place I'd pick, but it just goes to show how diverse and talented the musicians gaining traction here in Nova Scotia really are. If you are looking for a fresh sound from a local artist, you could do a lot worse than settling into Telemetry.

Labels: Canada, Music