ALBUM REVIEW: The Inklings – Move 37 (self-released)
The Inklings are a post-punk trio from Teesside and they’re a prolific lot; Move 37* is their seventh album in eight years, all of them self-released.
Daz Thomas handles guitar and vocals, his son James is on drums and keyboards, with Mick McGee is on bass and vocals, and together they make a very enjoyable noise indeed.
Things get underway with lead single Insomnia, and like many of their songs there’s a strong Stranglers undercurrent to the keys. But it’s the insistent hook which pulls you right in before the vocals begin. The piercing riff sums up the racing thoughts which often accompany the feeling of being unable to sleep.
Nip And Tuck is towards the punkier end of their sound, and is a commentary on the all-pervading trend of having cosmetic surgery. “Your face isn’t moving, you can’t crack a smile, your skin’s stretched like a rubber glove…” Yep, never understood it myself. Nothing wrong with growing old gracefully.
There’s a real feeling of ennui about Your Town, which addresses the social decline seen in too many towns in the band’s native North East, while there’s a cinematic ’60s vibe to the reflective The Day Of the Night, which sounds like an Arctic Monkeys/Last Shadow Puppets song.
Lonely Road sounds like it’s about recovery, and it probably depends on the listener as to whether it’s about loss, depression, alcoholism, or some other personal trauma.
War Stories throws you off guard a little with its jazz-funk intro, but it turns out to be a warning about failing to learn the lessons of the past as mankind plunges itself into yet another unnecessary conflict, with the victims quickly forgotten.
There’s a great bassline running through the slightly unsettling Transylvanian, while the rousing conclusion of Fool The World is among the album’s best moments.
It sets the stage nicely for Stirring The Well, which takes down fakes and pretenders, while the epic-sounding In Your Lifetime closes out another fine album from this most enjoyable trio. 8/10.
