Steve Mason, formerly of The Beta Band has a new record out called About the Light. It's full of the carefully constructed melody, space and thought that made his former group one of the most interesting bands produced in the UK over the last thirty years.
If there's nothing on here that will particularly surprise anybody who ever cupped an ear to and enjoyed a Beta Band record, there's plenty here that will please them too. Recorded with former Smith's producer Stephen Street, (who buffs everything to a shine for commercial purposes as you'd expect), About the Light is a crafted and, (dare I say it), mature record, complete with backing singers and muso chops.
If occasionally this wanders into Primal Scream, Get Your Rocks Off or Waters' Floyd territory, not things that warm my cockles, Mason is better when he tends towards the great British eccentric tradition of Kevin Ayers, Kevin Coyne, Andy Partridge and Syd Barrett. There's much on here that appeals to me and it's all suitably groomed and pruned to cater for the Q crowd too. Mainstream weirdness.
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