The title ‘Falmouth Sound‘ has come to embody the fruitful creativity stemming from the Dock-Town wharf in Cornwall of which a prolific community of musicians call home, in the form of three bands. What makes the music that each who have shaped this loose definition so appealing is their evident distinction from another. The Black Tambourines reach inside a garage-rock body, rip out it’s core and invest their attraction in unorthodox innovators to create a thoroughly absorbing and consistently developing sonic plate. The Red Cords take a dip in the San Francisco Bay, encompassing garage-punk frivolity with surf hooks that evokes fervour which cannot be ignored. With their recent release ‘Manchild‘, Lost Dawn add another distinctive layer to the increasingly prevalent area, a figurative tab that you’ll want to take again and again.
Alike to their previous release, ‘Song For Robert‘, the duo encase alluring, divergent influences within a 70s-infused Glam Rock composition. Ben Woods and Stanley Duke summon an Eastern-Psych spirit through entrancing guitar-lines and tribal percussion within a mysterious opening prelude, a tense build-up of skittish rhythms before launching into a direct, glimmering progression of Bolan-esque guitar. Consistent hooks and a forthright approach to song-crafting allows them to test yet not lose their listener in waves of noise. This is again evident in the comprehensive priority given to it’s production, which with the simplicity in structure allows the band to be as creative with their instrumentation as they evidently can be. It could have been all to easy to drown Duke’s vocal in reverb to paint a 60s polish, yet even in whisper the vocals are prominent and with the disorientating panning of instruments conjure an atmospheric mysteriousness that runs throughout the track. A prime example being the introduction of cacophonous violin through the experimentally instrumental latter half of the track, reminiscent of ‘Hot Rats‘ era Zappa, yet setting their own tone by not letting too loose in terms of structure unalike the alternative icon.
Duke is the metaphorical conscience of a seedy, curious character that is threatened with justice for their fiendish acts, adding again to the eerie element. His voice menacingly enlightened, the whisper he provides through each verse is threatening and ghostly, before setting alight with attitude through a punching chorus.
Captivating in it’s enigmatic delivery, ‘Manchild’ is a bold statement of an opening track, coalescing various tones whilst channeling a direct, immediate rhythm. Accessible in it’s structure yet deep in each layer of sound they nurture, the duo bewilder with enticing confidence. Lost Dawn, like their Falmouth counterparts, are leaving a auspicious taste in many mouths. With their self-titled record expected 2015, prepare for an album that whilst punching with immediacy, will have a broad phonic palette to take from.
‘Manchild’ cassette will be released via Easy Action Records on 17th November. Lost Dawn are heading out for dates as part of the ‘Falmouth Sound‘ tour with The Black Tambourines and The Red Cords, including our First Birthday Show on 4th December, the dates are:
Exeter Cavern – 26th November
Bristol Roll For The Soul – 28th November
London Stag’s Head – 29th November
Brighton Sticky Mike’s – 30th November
Wax Music’s First Birthday – Viva La Fal All-Dayer – Falmouth Beerwolf Books – 4th December
Penzance Studio Bar – 5th December
Truro Hub Box – 6th December