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┌────────┐
────┤ Info ├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
└────────┘
Artist | The High Llamas
Title | Here Come The Rattling Trees
Genre | Indie Format | Album
Source | CDDA Time | 27:07
Label | Drag City Store | 2016
Catalog | DC638CD Rip | 2016
Bitrate | 221 kbps Size | 46.14 MB
Freq | 44.1 kHz Encoder | Lame 3.98.4
┌────────┐
────┤ Tracks ├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
└────────┘
01. Prelude: A Day In The Square 2:27
02. Amy Recalls: Barham Trees 0:35
03. Here Come The Rattling Trees 3:32
04. Runner Recalls: Outback Runner 0:26
05. Bramble Underscore 2:29
06. Bramble Black 1:47
07. Mona Underscore: Slow Down Mona 1:32
08. Mona's Song 1:34
09. Decorator Recalls: Step Tempo Has Arrived 0:21
10. McKain Underscore 0:48
11. McKain James 2:25
12. Plumber Recalls: Call Me To The Common 0:25
13. Liverne Underscore 0:31
14. Livorno 2:17
15. Jackie Underscore: The Bells Ring Straight 2:53
16. Jackie 3:05
┌────────┐
────┤ Notes ├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
└────────┘
Although The High Llamas are nominally a group, they're pretty much the
brainchild of singer and guitarist Sean O'Hagan. O'Hagan did some time in
the London-by-way-of-Dublin band Microdisney, in which he was the
songwriting partner of Cathal Coughlan. After Microdisney split in 1988
(Coughlan forming Fatima Mansions), O'Hagan released a couple of
import-only solo albums before forming the High Llamas. The Llamas issued
their debut, "Gideon Gaye", in 1994 to high praise in the British press; it
was released in the States a year later almost as an afterthought, with
virtually no fanfare.
After a career spent making albums that felt like soundtracks, filled with
repeating motifs, cinematic banjos, and the kind of cheerful, wistful
melodies it was easy to envision someone cuddly like Kermit the Frog or
Joseph Gordon-Levitt delivering, Sean O'Hagan and his High Llamas finally
broke down in 2014 and wrote a musical of sorts. Inspired by O'Hagan's
bicycle rides around his neck of the woods in Southeast London, "Here Come
The Rattling Trees" is a loosely shaped narrative telling the stories of
people real and imagined set to some typically sweet and deceptively simple
musical backing.
The main motif is a chiming bit of sunshine pop featuring
harpisichord-esque acoustic guitar plucking and a staccato bassline that
would have made Brian Wilson happy. It repeats throughout the album in
slight variations, gaining in beauty each time it rolls around. The songs
themselves are the usual Llamas fare, with O'Hagan's lovely voice
surrounded by clip-clopping percussion, all sorts of warm keyboards, and
rich, aged-to-perfection arrangements. The title track is the most
arresting of the bunch, sporting a memorable chorus and an almost
unbearably autumnal feel.
It has a depth of emotion that many Llamas songs don't reach. At times it
seemed like O'Hagan was more interested in sound than the feeling
underneath, which is a perfectly fine way to operate. On "Rattling Trees",
he digs a little deeper at times and that works, too. Either way, as long
as he and his group crank out songs as immediately hooky and perfectly
crafted as "McKain James," a High Llamas album is going to be one worth
checking out. Especially if you are a filmmaker looking for someone to
score your next cute indie rom-com or pastoral romp. O'Hagan proves here
once and for all that he's up to the job.
┌────────┐
────┤ Group ├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
└────────┘