Medway’s Theatre Royal recently supported the Human League at Rochester Castle. To celebrate this triumph, they released the lead single ‘1994’ from their EP ‘Beneath The Floor’.
The single & EP are available from their Bancamp page.
Johnny Marr is the undoubted king of riffs. However, loitering behind him are the guitars of Oliver and Robert. Single after single they find a new way to bring mod revival and c86 glory into the modern world. ‘1994’ is no different. The warming guitar parts alongside the dazzling brass conjure images of Graham Coxon joining Orange Juice. Meanwhile, the solo fires out from Steve Cradock’s majestic OCS cannon circa 1996.
The use of brass (Chris Kingman) is not new for the band. To be in full carnival mode is though. It’s the perfect accompaniment to this tale of an erratic friend. It places the wayward soul in the middle of a party they most likely should never have arrived at. The edge of darkness lurking beneath the celebratory atmosphere is a joy to behold.
‘1994’ confirms we’ve known for a decade and what Louder Than War professed perfectly:
“why the fuck are they not really famous?”