West Yorkshire Superheroes and one of York’s greatest bands, PERCY are back with a new album, on 10ft Records, and despite the concerns of one band member (due to the lateness of reviews, including this one) it is most definitely not pants! It kicks off with some really dark riffs, appropriately given the title and subject of “Sink Estate Satanic Rites” which mentions classic horror author Dennis Wheatley. The video contains some essential UK horror movie tropes too. The deep bass rumble that powers “Blackout” is reminiscent of Jah Wobble on early PiL tracks. The title track is a punchy, angular, post-punk powerhouse that got me thinking of the Stranglers at their peak. Colin’s lyrics throughout the album are idiosyncratic and out-there, and frankly, no one else could create something close from a lyrical perspective. The circus-like keyboard motifs on “Thinking Of Jacking It In Again” would fit perfectly in a really warped David Lynch-style horror film. This is eerie, emotional and perhaps the closest PERCY has ever come to showing a Beatles influence. If you link hard post-punk and ghost stories then “Last Train To Selby” is right up your street! For me, this is the pinnacle of a great album which contains some monumentally mountainous musical peaks within it. I suspect that “Do You Think I’m On The Spectrum?” is a brutally honest take on those whose superpower is being neuro-diverse. Either way, I feel that I want to play this to some of the kids that I work with who are on the spectrum.
The band was born in 1996 and this is the fourth album since original band members Colin Howard (guitar and vocals) and Andy Wiles (bass) were joined by Paula Duck (keys) and Jason Wilson (drums) in 2017. I believe that it is an album that sees the band developing into something really special. Many people, myself included, have made easy and obvious comparisons with the Fall. But on this new album, PERCY are heading way beyond that and maybe in thirty years, people like me will be comparing new music to PERCY. “Greedy People” will be a PERCY live staple given its anthemic power. “I Can Hear Orgies” is probably the most PERCY track on the album, can you think of any band that could even dream of a title like this? It has a well-rounded power-pop feel, especially in the soft-to-loud guitar work. The sound on “You Never Know” draws on some fine early 80s alternative music that would have been an instant classic on John Peel’s show. A reggae remix of this would be something worth hearing I think. At almost six minutes long “Afterlife” is perhaps the most ambitious track on the album and feels cinematic in its ambition. The slowish tune is based around some classy keyboard loops and understated bass lines all underpinned by some perfect syncopated stick work from Jason Wilson. I think “Afterlife” will become one of the best PERCY songs ever laid down, after a few plays it is easily my second favourite on this record. You can purchase the album and also choose to buy a huge selection of the PERCY back catalog on Bandcamp. So what are you waiting for? Click here to spend a few bob on some great sounds!
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