The
Mules
Save Your Face
What’s this then? Another new CD, another
new band and another press release containing the words ‘angular’
and ‘Gang of Four’ – pressing play I’m
expecting another post-punk bandwagon act, ripping off a mixture
of Gang of Four, Television and The Fall in a vain attempt to
enter into some hip retro-rock scene.
In fact, as opener ‘Polly O’ bursts from my speakers
with its jittery rhythms and raw intensity it becomes apparent
I’m in for a completely different experience. The Mules
debut Save Your Face is a ramshackle aural journey that delivers
the unexpected and definitely has plenty of the ‘What the
fuck was that’ factor – nothing is sacred as the band
playfully tease punk, skiffle, country, blues and folk.
To some, these sounds could be seen as a gross violation of the
musical traditions they point to, but to others it brings an uneasy
energy to the safest of aural ideas, making The Mules an exciting
and dangerous proposition.
Rooted in skew-whiff rhythms and driven by disjointed beats the
band drag danceable indie-rock tunes from their own territory,
presenting 15 of the most exhilarating new rock arrangements you’ll
hear all year.
Aural mutations include the country-ska-oi mash-up of ‘Tule
Lake’, the Devo-sounding, insane electro-jazz-bluegrass
melee of ‘Misprint’ and punk-vaudeville stomper ‘Picking
in my business’.
The whole event comes to a screeching, explosive guitar and honky-tonk
piano climax on ‘Ham Shank’, leaving me confused and
breathless.
What exactly do The Mules sound like?
Everything – check.
Nothing else – check.
How to surmise Save Your Face?
Impossible to categorise, but so wrong it’s right.
by
Chris Marks
