Debut Album ‘Your Break Our Hearts, We’ll Break Yours’

When I first played this wonderful debut album from The GIlded Palace Of Sin the same old thought flashed in and out of my mind, and it took the form of a question: ‘How the hell are the public going to hear this CD to realise how bloody good it is?’  It’s inventive alt-country with songs over 4 minutes so radio is extremely unlikely to play it. Very brief soundbites are available through Amazon, one can listen to samples at www.myspace.com/thegildedpalaceofsin , as well as see the band perform live on one of the band’s support gigs (where they will appear as total strangers to a bunch of fans arriving primarilly to see the headline act). In short, without airplay, it’s very hard. We played two songs from the album on last Sunday’s Shakenstir Session including the glorious eight-minute ‘Mean Old Jack’, but then we’re broadcasting mavericks who follow the quality of music and not overblown hype. BBC online gave the album an unreserved thumbs-up review, but will they play a single song from it? I think we both know the answer to that one…

The band is made up of Pete Phythian (lead vocal, guitar, computer), Vini Taylor (guitar, banjo, drums, vocals) and Michelle Lock (Theremin, glockenspiel, ukulele, jaw harp, music box and various percussion). Now looking at the range of instruments used you’d think that the sound this band makes is quite something else, and you’d be right. It’s pretty well unlike anything I’ve heard, especially when you add in the rasping, passionate vocal of lead-man Phythian, and the most accomplished production that eeks out every sonic nuance.

Opening track, ‘For When We Forget’, serves as a largely instrumental album introduction that flows beautfully, punctuated by flashes of percussion, keyboards and finally distant vocal moments from the man himself. It’s a fine, mystical and compelling (almost five-minute) introduction.  Then seamlesslesly into the first song proper, ‘Rosa Salvaje’, with its razor-sharp finger-picking and rough-hewn Phythian vocal that is so pivotal to this recording. The song is in narrative, alt-country style with a powerful melody and sound quality that is clarity personified. Then comes, for me, the centrepiece of this wonderful record, ‘Mean Old Jack.’ Driving this mutha is a relentless bellowing percussive rhythm, another powerful melody,  expressive vocal and great story-telling lyrics. It’s an extraordinary song with an eight-minute life, and frankly I wanted it to last another eight minutes - it’s that good! Oh, and there’s a the mad rush of instruments at the end that leaves one breathless…

‘Rubbing Up’  is like nothing I’ve ever heard with its ear-drum splitting percussive backdrop and almost spoken vocal that just about survives the instrumental barrage. ‘There Is No Evil There Is No Good’ opens with a an exended, tantalising and extraordinary mix of stringed instruments, percussion and keyboards before the lead vocal eventually comes into super-clear focus. Like much of the music here it’s as dark as the blackest storm clouds, pitched somewhere between blues-rock and alt-country. It’s impossible for this song not to leave an emotive mark on the listener…

‘Vony & The Plynths’ repeats the dose with Pete Phythian literally throwing his vocal to the four winds as he communicates his doom-laden message. ‘Bones Of The Saints’ offers quiet, contemplative respite as it travels along at slow-walking pace with magical lyrics (”God will have to fix the hole in the roof.”). It’s a moving, cautionary tale, beautifully told. The last three songs, ‘Wedding Rice’, ‘Nautilus’ and ‘Home Because You’re There’ are dazzling in their sonic diversity and inventiveness.

This is a very fine album, and in one of the best album release years ever, stands very proud. My hope is that people will eventually hear and marvel in it.

4.5/5

Here’s a short review from someone who witnessed a recent live performance by the band:

Having just got in from seeing The Gilded Palace support Tinariwen in Manchester and purchased their CD from them there I had to write a little review… a harrowingly brilliant true melting pot of a record taking in equal parts Gordon Lightfoot, Nick Cave, Tom Waits, Angelo Badalamenti and even Battles. Yeah sounds crazy, but the whole sound is held together with the sonic glue of singer Pete Phythian’s heartfelt smoke-inflicted purr/growl on subjects such as the human condition and faith, whilst the band propel concise vision of who they are and what they want. And they manage to pull off all these crazy sounds live too, with real passion. 5 stars!

Gareth Bradbury