Truly, we are living in blessed times, for it seems that not a week goes by without another record being released that I'm instantly falling in love with. This week it's the turn of Fever Dream's mysteriously titled 'EP'.Fever Dream seem to have been around for about a year now, mainly playing in London, and releasing a single earlier this year on Underused Records, run by Grant and Rob of the wonderful, lost Hillfields. And if I'm sounding a little vague, it's because I haven't got a press release for this new single.
I booked Fever Dream for our Christmas Party gig on December 8th in Nottingham on the strength of hearing one song, and so it's an absolute joy to hear six of the beauties. Here they veer between dreampop and urgent post-punk or New Wave. It'd kind of like discovering your older, cooler brother or sister's record collection in the space of 25 minutes.
Whereas 'Suspense' is Magazine at their most visceral, 'Poyekhali!' almost takes a trip into goth country, but is saved by a broken choirboy vocal and scattergun drums before building and building and just, all of a sudden, taking off into the sky somewhere. It reminds of Moose or Boo Radleys at their most powerful. It's thrilling, to be honest.
The ep ends with Alchemy a numb, dreamlike nursery rhyme that makes you feel like you're dropping off to sleep in the bath. This is how all songs should make you feel, and opener 'Glue' repeats the trick by sounding like a song that would sit easily on Pale Saint's flawless 'Comforts of Madness' album from way back when (still can't listen to that record too often, even after all these years).
Six songs, then, that show more invention, more emotion and more pop nous than most bands manage in six years. You best buy it.
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