Music > Album Reviews

DRINKS - Hermits On Holiday

20/08/15

Wow! This unlikely coupling of Welsh-speaking songstress Cate Le Bon with San Franciscan noisenik Tim Presley (White Fence) has, within an incredibly short space of time, become my favourite album of the year. Deliciously idiosyncratic, and addictive, this collection of adult nursery rhymes coupled with jittery jangly guitar licks, choppy percussion and lo-fi keyboards is a summer delight. Starting with the hypnotic Laying Down The Rock, a simple riff that repeats over and over before shooting off like an asteroid into hyperspace, the mood is set for a journey to free the mind of MIDI-induced dance clutter or Guetta hands-in-the-air euphoria. The title track includes not only the slickest chorus lick ever – “Hermits on a rock, hermits on a roll, hermits on holiday, hermits on hiatus”, but also breathes new life into 'making hay', 'feeding time' and 'cop-u-late'. Cannon Mouth distorts like a diver on Bikini Bottom smack, and we are sucker punched by Cate's irritating-child-like interruptions of  “Tim Do I like That Dog?” as the guitars stay resolutely focused on completing the track. By the time we reach Cheerio and Time Between we have passed the point of no return. We are instinctively hitting the replay button. Glorious.

9/10