{"id":6180,"date":"2019-06-21T05:00:26","date_gmt":"2019-06-21T05:00:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/rpmonline.co.uk\/?p=6180"},"modified":"2019-06-15T23:28:12","modified_gmt":"2019-06-15T23:28:12","slug":"ulysses-on-safari-black-glove-recordings","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rpmonline.co.uk\/?p=6180","title":{"rendered":"Ulysses – On Safari (Black Glove Recordings)"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Bath based power pop loons Ulysses have been delivering quirky, glam-slam slices of noise for many years now. With more facial hair than a cave full of cavemen and a wardrobe half-inched from Huggy Bear, they have produced 3 albums of vintage noise steeped equally in both 70\u2019s nostalgia and Brit Pop goodness. You see, these fun loving chaps owe as much to the likes of Super Furry Animals and Supergrass as they do to heroes like Bowie and Bolan. And it\u2019s a good mix of influences that shine through to make their fourth long player \u2018On Safari\u2019 a fantastic ride from start to finish.<\/p>\n

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Check out the cover art by the wonderful Caitlin Mattisson for starters. Lions, giant snakes and a hot medieval babe with 8 arms and a broadsword….fair play, I\u2019m sold on that alone! Let\u2019s hope the music is up to it too.<\/p>\n

And of course it is, Ulysses does not disappoint. Opener \u2018Looking For A Guru\u2019 sets the scene with a glitter-coated, platform boot stomp. What sounds like a sitar introduces the song that rides on a catchy refrain over big beats, handclaps and Paul Stanley helium vocals. It’s more 70\u2019s than a packet of Spangles and twice as sweet. A glorious album opener.<\/p>\n

The following funky, yet spunky \u2018Doctors And Nurses\u2019 out-foxes Foxy Shazam. Sirens wail and sweet vocals harmonise the intro. Tongue-in-cheek lyricism and double-entendres are rife. Its disco groove shouts Scissor Sisters, while its wailing guitar outro shouts Kiss, what\u2019s not to like here? A total contrast to the opener, yet still in tune with their retro sound.<\/p>\n

These boys have a handful of singles on offer for you too. \u201cFor those about to rock…for those about to roll\u2019 drawls the singer over sloppy, cool riffs and cowbell accompaniment on the fantastic \u2018Bad Tattoo\u2019. The following \u2018Dragons\u2019 is full of instant, quirky melodies and fuzzy guitars, coming on like the perfect mash-up of Weezer and the Super Furries. Whether it\u2019s actually about dragons is debatable, what\u2019s not debatable is that it was the perfect single choice.<\/p>\n

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They veer into classic sounding 60\u2019s pop territory and make it sound so effortless. \u2018This Useless Love\u2019 has \u00a0Beach Boys\/Everly Brothers vibes and \u2018She\u2019 is a glorious slab of 60\u2019s pop with urgent beats, killer vocal harmonies and ripping guitar solos, coming on like Kula Shaker at their finest.<\/p>\n

The trippy, prog fest that is \u2018Situation Man\u2019 is out there maaan! A full on Hammond organ jam out and elsewhere, \u2018Fuzzy Lion\u2019 mixes up a \u2018Tomorrow Never Knows\u2019 drum beat with Silver Sun vocalisin\u2019 in the most sublime of ways.<\/p>\n

\u2018Let’s Move\u2019 prove that Giuda and Biters aren\u2019t the only cool cats to channel Thin Lizzy and Slade all in one double denim-clad 3-minute pop hit or two. Even the reggae-infused mid-section breakdown can\u2019t detract from their ability to create songs that should be on 7 inch and riding high in the hit parade, pop pickers. Killer tuneage!<\/p>\n

It\u2019s no surprise that singer Luke Smyth has seemingly morphed into a young Jeff Lynne. Check out the likes of \u2018Married Woman\u2019 and the eccentricity of closer \u2018Calendar Street\u2019 with its immense ELO layered harmonies climax. I even had to YouTube and Google \u2018Why Aren\u2019t These People My Friends\u2019 just to be sure, as I feel like I should already know it… I don\u2019t and it’s ace!<\/p>\n

It may be raining outside, but Ulysses bring the sunshine to your stereo with their new long player \u2018On Safari\u2019. I didn\u2019t think they made the sort of drugs that could inspire this sort of music anymore, maybe I\u2019m wrong, or maybe it\u2019s just the Bath water (sic). But Ulysses has created a trippy, hippie-fied, love-fest of an album. A soundtrack to the summer we have yet to experience. And certainly one of the most entertaining albums you will hear this year.<\/p>\n

Author: Ben Hughes<\/p>\n

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