Headwork - Don't Pass It By (Radio Edit)

Hear The Track Here

A brand new name (to me anyway) again, this time courtesy of Soundclick. The band are, apparently, from the UK and are Jay Porter, Dean Woodington, Andy Clarke and Tony Dawe and, I guess, not so new to Soundclick because they have comments going back a few years. Mind you, huge site, one little guy, know what I mean? Anyway, they are billed as an Alternative band, and Don't Pass It By is billed as that interesting new genre 'shoegaze' and yet their influences are a fairly classic mix of new and older rock names. Mmmmm, mixed messages anyone? Whatever, we have come across shoegaze before if I remember correctly because one Thomas J Marchant is my own favourite choice. Aaaahhh, now you are beginning to get the picture. See, a genre whose name really does describe the music; spacey, lollopping and intensely introverted. Where Thomas sticks to a retro feel for it, Headwork go for a much more electronic sound.

Ever since Echo and The Bunnymen there has been this miserablist strain in English music, mainly from the North of England and centered around the cities of Liverpool, Manchester and Sheffield - all of which produced classic examples of the genre. So although I like, say, a couple of the Smiths tracks and some others I'm too lazy to look up, this is a genre I would usually run a mile from. Fortunately, it has mellowed from its snot-nosed, whiney brat beginnings into a reasonably decent genre and, thanks to Thomas J, I've developed quite a taste for this newer, modern variety. Well, now I can add Headwork to the bag too because the track is extremely well put together technically and it's a pretty decent tune into the bargain, particularly if you happen to like the genre.

Now I know that it's almost de rigeur to mumble the vocals in this genre but even so Don't Pass It By does a neat trick. As much as the vocal can hardly crawl out of the singers mouth, and as whispery as that voice is you can hear all the words, and that knocked me right on my critical butt. It isn't often that I am able to hear one of these tracks where as much attention has been spent on the final product as on the fun bits of putting it all together. I'm also a sucker for that time honoured 303 sound and this track features a beaut, and it just gets better as it goes along making me suspect that this was put together in Reason but I'm prepared to be wrong about that. No mattter what though, I'll probably be coming back to hear more from this quarter because Don't Pass It By is a cracking introduction.

Highly Recommended Electronic shoegazing...