Maxfield - Stucklike

Hear The Track Here

Been a while getting to this review, what with one thing and another, but better late than never eh? I think I was supposed to have reviewed this ages ago but... Maxfield are a four peice rock band from London comprising of singer/songwriter Valerie Maxfield, Julian Chown, Marky Mark (not THE Marky Mark, surely?) and Clive Jenner. Judging by the comments on the webpage, they are a live band so maybe I should get my aging, saggy butt out of the house for the first time in a century and take in a 'gig'. But wait, shouldn't we first take a look at a sample?

MmmmmmmmOK....yer tis...

The first thing you'll notice about this track is that it's finished to a high gloss. The production and mix on this track are absolutely spot on, showing a very high degree of professionalism. Those same sentiments can be equally as convincingly applied to the music, lyrics and vocals so all in all, if you were looking for something 'commercial' this would fill that spot perfectly. Y'all know me by now and know that my harshest judgements are about poor production standards, so obviously Maxfield know a thing or two about how to do it. I should fekkin coco. If I didn't love Stucklike for all those qualities, then I for damn sure would have loved it because it's a cracking song with an oh so slightly wacky air that can leave you breathless.

As if all of that were not enough, the crowning glory is the voice of Valerie Maxfield, smoky, commanding and with its own sense of rhythm (as a classic example, get a listen to the little ragga section somewhere in the middle of the track). It's probably just a little too off-the-wall for real commercial potential but the fault for that lies in the public taste rather than anything the band are doing wrong. In fact, it's that out-of-kilter feel that sticks in your mind as much as the track itself. I'm always on the lookout for artists who twist things around to look at them another way and Maxfield have just become a very welcome addition to my hard drive.

Original. Different. Wonderful.