New Long Leg
by Dry Cleaning

From Mercury TOP 100 COMMENTER 04/03/2021 00:34 | #268117 | TOP COMMENT Vote up your preferred comments and the comments with the most votes will be flagged.

Post Punk and Art Punk. Oh and REALLY GREAT Post Punk and Art Punk. Oh and this band and album is fucing awesome. And the lead speaker is already a first ballot hall of fame vocalist. Florence "Flo" Shaw, remember that name.)

You ever hear one of those albums that, for some reason, makes you smile, instantly and then the whole way through? An album that just sounds so right, so in step with the way you feel and the way you want to express those feelings, you can't help but feel instantly like you are hearing an old favorite despite it being the first time you've ever heard the artist? Yeah, those are great times. And, guess what? That is EXCATLY how I felt about this here debut LP by English Post Punk wry jokesters Dry Cleaning! Isn't that a crazy twist I just concocted there? Bet you didn't realize those first sentences were about this album here!

Anyway, enough of that. More about New Long Leg. Its brilliant. It's the best Post Punk album I've heard in awhile. It is, musically, a tour-de-force of at times ice cold repetitive riffs and at times quite lively, buttery almost funky riffs. The bass playing and the way it is highlighted at times reminds me of the bass heroics of Wobble on Metal Box (don't get yourself in a twist, I'm not saying its exactly the same, just at times that heavy, funky, wobbly dub bass vibe comes through here and there), and other times the bassist is always holding that groove down with such sexy greatness. The drumming is that post punk simplicity with just enough wiggle to keep you guessing.

The songs are all cool and all built around these varying phases of lowkey post punk excellence. Sometimes the songs take weird left turns, such as on the hypnotic second half of album closer "Every day Carry" and the way that weird synth melody is just battered and slashed by these weird effects that get more and more random and unexpected and manic, is glorious.

Yet, really, I'm burying the lead. The star is the utterly unique Florence Shaw. Her wry humour, her at first glance monotone spoken word delivery, the way she takes no one and nothing seriously in the words she graces these tracks with (including herself), the wit and the absurdity of some of these seemingly throw-away lines, everything about her is brilliance. I think some may say she is boring and monotonous, well I don't, and those people are wrong. She is the heart and soul of this album with all due respect to the perfectly done post punk jams that she talks over.

This whole album just feels right. It feels cool, equal parts warm and cold, funny and thought provoking and the perfect antidote to so much of this other (also quite great in most cases) post punk/art punk coming out of England the last few years. Whereas they are oh so earnest and angry and angsty and dour, here comes this gem of an album and band that maintains those similar musical aims and influences but flips the package on its head with a wise crack, a pointless monologue, and a sly smile. Oh and the music is better executed, more unique and more inspired to boot.

In case you can't tell, I just love this album. (Edited)

What an incredible year for British Post-Punk and experimental music. A stunning mixture of cryptical but heartfelt, intimate spoken word and hypnotic, trance-like, Joy Division infused instrumentals.

To say any more wouldnt do it justice, and quite frankly Mercury has summed this up perfectly. Wonderful, WONDERFUL album!!!

Awesome stream-of-consciousness post-punk album. Vocalist Florence Shaw's honest and often times hilarious poetry and dispassionate indifference makes Dry Cleaning stand out from their peers.

Things are changing. A tiresome swim in a pointless sea. Do everything and feel nothing. Shane has joined the chat. Too much to ask about so don't ask. Huge white geese please us all. Now it seems like none of that meant anything.

A brilliant album from start to finish. For being a mostly stream-of-consciousness effort, the lyrics are so sharp (and often humorous). And Tom Dowse's guitar work is nothing short of spectacular. I've probably listened to this record a few dozen times and I still keep finding myself coming back to it. There's something special about the way Florence's deadpan-style vocals blend with the music. (Edited)

From mdbaxter TOP 100 COMMENTER 07/07/2021 19:24 | #271423 | TOP COMMENT Vote up your preferred comments and the comments with the most votes will be flagged.

Perfectly in sync four piece band whose members each do more than hold their own. The fantastically uncaring vocals (and lyrics) make the album a unique experience. Really great stuff.