One of Sheffield’s finest bands, the Suncharms have returned with a new two track single featuring “Monster To Me (Halloween Version)” and “Tuesday Afternoon Séance”. The first song, “Monster In Me” is a beautifully crafted slice of indie pop rock with a sublime shoegaze overlay. At times it made me think of some of the best Beatles outtakes on the Anthology series. The brass sounds, (actually is that real brass or synth emulation?) add a moving depth to this frankly marvelous easy going song. Meanwhile “Tuesday Afternoon Séance” has a similar, but sometimes darker, musical vibe with some wonky fuzzed riffs and an ethereal vocal refrain that is reminiscent of Donovan at the height of his hippie powers. If this band is not in your life yet, then do something about it! The Suncharms have featured regularly on these pages since 2018 and I am sure they will appear more in the future too.
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The latest release by the Sheffield band Suncharms, ‘Things Lost’ crashed with a bang into my inbox last week. If you’ve never heard of the Suncharms they describe themselves as an indie/shoegaze band from Sheffield and are made up of Marcus Palmer on Vocals, Matt Neale on Guitar, John Malone on Guitar, Richard Farnell on Bass, and Chris Ridley on Drums. They formed in 1989, inspired by indie and pop, and within a year were supporting the likes of Curve, Catherine Wheel, and Cranes. With two successful EP releases in 1991 followed by a Peel session early in 1992, it looked like the band would go from strength to strength. Sadly they played their last gig in 1993 and luckily for us punters, they got back together in 2021.
The album kicks off with “3.45” which unsurprisingly lasts for 3 minutes 45 seconds. It opens with what sounds like the crackle of a vinyl LP, slightly scratched, creating a glorious feeling of nostalgia. Are they suggesting something about their nostalgic return after many years? The track bursts into a meaty guitar riff, and for a minute, I thought I was listening to Bill Nelson. It was either Matt or John this time, and it sounds bloody brilliant! The tuneful 6-string guitar blends seamlessly with Marcus’ whispery vocals accompanied by solid and simple drums and bass, courtesy of Chris and Richard. Next up “Satanic Rites”, a laid-back track, soft and more dominant vocals drive this melodic piece of pop music. Few jangles, little distortion, literally no effects, and definitely not a classic shoegaze style expertly demonstrates their talent and capability of straddling a number of genres. “Things Lost”, the title track returns to The Suncharms’ familiar style. Reminiscent of Ride and even early Blur, it’s dreamlike, it deliciously swirls around and is punctuated by neat guitar work. The off- beat drums work a treat, being a drummer myself, I can probably appreciate this more than others. About 3 minutes in, the sound is stripped back, then builds layer upon layer, finishing with a sweet Hammond keyboard sound.
“Whitby” is the next track on the album, maybe inspired by the album cover or vice-versa, explodes with punchy drums and distorted guitars, accompanied by Marcus’s soft vocals. Together with some well-placed harmonies, the whole ensemble encourages you to get lost in the mood. A powerful Wall of Sound opens the next track, “Daylight is Here” and not too dissimilar to the opening of “Just Like Honey” (The Jesus and Mary Chain). Deftly matched with a melodic guitar riff being echoed by a soft walking bass line and wonderfully layered guitars. The result is a more stripped-back sound than we’ve heard so far and manages to give you space to absorb the floating melodies and airy vocals. A powerful and jangly guitar riff opens “Red Wine Kisses”, swooping you off your feet and transporting you back to a moody and atmospheric sound. Marcus’s vocals together with the lush harmonies, and solid percussion from Messrs Farnell and Ridley, propel this track along nicely and before you know it…it’s over and we launch immediately into “Dark Sails”. This track takes us on a truly melodic trip! More layered guitars, sumptuous harmonies, vocals, and expertly crafted guitar riffs. The finishing flute at the end is sooo “Strawberry Fields Forever” to further add to the trippiness!
Next up is “Demonic Eyes” a song which quite simply sums up everything the Suncharms are about. The trademark vocals, the meandering melodies, sweet angel-like harmonies, poignant guitar mastery, and second-to-none percussion and bass. It’s indie pop, it’s shoegaze, it’s C86 generation…it’s awesome! The penultimate tune called “Torrential Rain” has a Roses feel, familiar yet nostalgic. The track builds gradually to its finale, the emphasis being on the instrumental prowess of the lads and leaving the vocals early on to speak for themselves. The closing track “Last Tram” brings this musical masterpiece to an end. Marcus asks us if it ‘Is it really time that we say goodbye’ and I’m afraid it is. The spoken word towards the close adds a certain interest as we haven’t heard anything like this before. I am Looking forward to these chaps going on tour, and living in North Yorkshire I hope to be able to see them once or even several times. Don’t take my words as read, listen to The Suncharms for yourself on Bandcamp and you’ll see what I’ve been going on about.
Written by Juan Brooks
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Suncharms first appeared in the pages of With Just A Hint Of Mayhem three years ago when I reviewed their sublime single “Red Dust”. Now they finally get to release their first album which has kind of been 30 years in the making. Things might have been so very different had social media existed back in the early 90s. In 1993 Slumberland Records expressed a desire to release something by the Suncharms, so the band duly sent a DAT Tape (remember those kids?) to the US record label in a decorated padded envelope. Slumberland never replied so the band assumed that they just weren’t into the charming Suncharms. The band eventually got back together on the back of a retrospective compilation CD on Cloudberry Records in 2016. Amazingly Slumberland picked up on this and contacted the band via FaceBook to explain that they never in fact received the DAT Tape. How might the life of this excellent band turn out had the DAT Tape been received?
Anyway, the past is behind us and we sure as hell can’t change it and we should celebrate the release of the first Suncharms album in 2021. It is called ‘Distant Lights’ and it is beautiful, adventurous and is among the best releases of 2021. I know I am a little late in reviewing it, but I didn’t want to miss that opportunity. The album kicks off with the title track and the mood of this one, along with the droney sound effects made me think of a 21st Century Joe Meek. After a few listens I think “Dream Of A Time Machine” is perhaps my favourite song, at least for now. It has a keen, cheerful feel and the vocal effects have a dub quality to them. I felt the presence of Noel Gallagher strongly on “Three Billion Heartbeats”, particularly with the guitar motifs, although to be fair this tune knocks spots off anything Oasis recorded after their first two albums. If the Velvet Underground were British and hit the scene during the Britpop years then I reckon they would have recorded something akin to “Liquid Through My Hands” and maybe “Cast A Spell”, two beautiful and delightfully eloquent numbers that is a perfect chill out sound.
I sense the spirit of Lee Mavers at his early 90s peak with the La’s on “Precious Hour”. If the charts reflected truly great music and really meant something these days then “Seas Of Titan” would be a shoe in for the top 5, gorgeous hooks aplenty and a stand out vocal performance from Marcus Palmer on vocals. The jangly, Byrdsian guitars on “Jewels” give the song a happy shoegaze vibe which you wouldn’t expect to work on paper, but on record it is immaculate. Sometimes I hear a tune and think, even if I was told I had to dislike it I couldn’t, “Casting Shadows” is such a tune and it leaves me happy after every listen. Cliff Richard, among others, once asked “Why should the Devil have all the good music?” well I would say largely perhaps the acoustics are good downstairs, but album closer “Lucifer” would even make Satan dance, laugh, smile and singalong. This is a marvellous, magnificent, majestic, mighty tour de force of a debut album that is well worth spinning, I love it! You can find it in all the usual places, click here to check it out on Spotify and click here to order your vinyl copy.
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