Paperjam

Saucer Crash EP by Black Ramps

Music // Jim // 19th March 2006

Black Ramps were kind enough to send me a copy of their Saucer Crash EP a few weeks back, due to the whole broken computer nightmare having a listen etc has had to wait. But I was able to admire the very nice bowling alley photo on the cover.

The Black Ramps are ploughing that melodic lo-fi furrow for all its worth; a bit scruffy but not really shambolic. Above all they seen to have been taking their Pavement tablets regularly, not necessarily a bad thing, it didn't do Blur any harm.

First track Saucer Crash is an audible Proust's Madeleine; A speedy rhythm section and crashing, clanging guitar over a yelped tale of alien-related girl enlargements, transporting me back to the staffs uni college road student union in the mid-nineties. Sonic Youth and Pavement are blaring out as I get pissed on cans of red stripe and conspicuously fail to arouse any interest in that bird with the tattoo and pink hair despite my dodgy donkey jacket. Oh well, Adidas t-shirt on and off to the Leek road disco nightmare for the next six months then.

Anyway, if Saucer Crash sounds reminiscent of Pavement, then Speak+Destroy sounds exactly like Pavement - a synthesis of Type Slowly and Transport Is Arranged. To my mind this is the best of the three tracks, but then I am a bit miserable.

Finally comes Rampenstein, which didn't do much for me, not as much fun as Saucer Crash and not nearly as dramatic as Speak+Destroy.

So there you have it, one for a bit of 90's nostalgia or for those who like a slightly rough edge to their indie -rock. I'm off to listen to Brighten The Corners. You can get more info on the nifty Black Ramps website, which has a rather cool Starsky And Hutch toy car on it and has other tracks to download plus the Saucer Crash video.