Minotaur Shock - Maritime (2005)

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"Having released his debut through Manchester's Melodic, Minotaur Shock (aka David Edwards) has packed up his magpies and decamped over to 4AD, with 'Maritime' his first release for the label. With four years having passed since 'Chiff Chaffs and Willow Warblers', Edwards' sound seems to have firmed up considerably whilst losing none of it's ramshackle charm, a fact consummately displayed on the breezy big-band break downs and off-kilter key changes of opening track 'Muesli'. Holding on to the loquacious mood established early on, '(She's In) Drydock Now' continues unabated with a firm nod to Gary Numan's synth collection whilst all around it sugar coated chunks of instrumentation rain down, whilst 'Vigo Bay' (taken from the recent EP) skanks a crafty 'Private Press'-era Shadow melody then beefs it up with a waterfall of tightly wrought, cascading drums. Elsewhere, Edward's reveals a soft spot for CD:UK on the S-Club aping 'Six Foolish Fishermen', takes a leaf out of Caribou's mellifluous book on 'Somebody Once Told Me It Existed But They Never Found It' and wraps it all up on the IDM grazed electonica of 'Four Magpies'. The future's bright, the future's rustic..."
via boomkat