Nottingham trio Little Barrie released their debut We Are Little Barrie in 2005, the original line up included Barrie Cadogan (guitars, vocals, piano, electronic organ), Wayne Fullwood (drums, vocals, piano, melodica, xylophone) and Lewis Wharton (bass guitar). The album was a funky, raucous rock album inspired by the sound and style of the late sixties rock scene. It is a hoot and one that I have returned to on many occasions.
Their latest album Electric War is just as original and enjoyable, only far more so. It nods to styles of rock that in part were popularised by British bands but which vanished from the airwaves long ago, and likewise are not mentioned in popular media.
In its current guise the band has swapped the talents of Wayne Fullwood for those of drummer Malcolm Catto of the Heliocentrics (a band that has in recent years collaborated with one of Ethiopia’s most prodigious creators, Mulatu Astatke, on the album Inspiration Information 3, and toured with him across the world)
Electric War is a mix of progressive rock with shades that style’s precursors in the sixties. The sound is underlined by the high ish signature vocal of Barrie Cadogan and percussive dynamics, but the youthful exuberance of their early work has been replaced by a mature creative flow of far more sophisticated energy.
The too few that will listen to the album will be thrilled by a sound that combines iconic themes once heard in music by the Guess Who, the Who, the Zombies and Ten Years After amongst others. There are hints of Satriani in Cadogan’s guitar and many nods to eastern rhythms in Catto’s drumming. But all through out there is a unique rightness that harnesses a percussive, foot-tapping, oh so appealing noise. It has a delightful nature of a kind that’s not often heard in rock albums today.
And the joy is not only provided by the intoxicating playing either. I bought the album from highresaudio.com, it is a 48kHz/24 bit affair with audio quality that is not often heard on rock albums. The accuracy of the bass, the kick drum depth and clarity need to be heard to be believed. The quality of the recording is a prodigious icing on a very tasty cake that make this album all the more addictive to the ear.
Electric War is short and very sweet (39 minutes), an elixir for those who have forsaken rock, a possibly addictive first taste for those who have grown with punk and wish to discover a far greater expression of music and energy. Litte Barrie have created a serious reason to be cheerful despite and in these hectic times and they have done it with style.
Reuben Klein