Album review: Mike Scott - Collecting Things

Mike Scott (guitar); Joe Bagg (piano/organ); Darek "Oles" Oleszkiewicz (bass); Jake Reed (drums).

A reviewer for the L.A. Weekly said of the album "... the music won't hit you over the head with precocious braggadocio or mind-numbing complexity". 

A fair description. Precocious braggadocio and mind-numbing complexity is fine in small doses but too much of it can lead to the listener seeking out liquid solace (any excuse!). 

Mike Scott is a fine guitarist and composer and his compadres slot in well. In fact Bagg, whether on Steinway, Hammond or whatever it is he is coaxing those wonderful sounds out of, is outstanding. He too goes easy on the  precocious braggadocio and mind-numbing complexity and sounds all the better for it. In fact albums that contain the aforementioned ingredients should come with a health warning - Please consult your BSH practitioner before pressing the Play button.

Collecting Things is one of those albums that grow on you. It's like when you go into the shower. Your body gradually adjusts to the temperature and you emerge glowing - until you slip on the soap! Fortunately there's no soap here just soothing sounds and the glow continues to the final track of these original compositions by Scott (with one exception - On a Clear Day - which Scott included because he "liked the tune").

Check it out. One of the perks of BSH is the chance to pick up on names that are otherwise little known  this side of the Atlantic and north of the Thames (a river). 

A nice one.

Try/Buy

Lance