Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10
One of the shining lights of new music to come out of London, the outstanding Melic, is an experience that if left unheard for too long could cause the listener to hang their head in shame at the sound they have let go past them. Now there really is no excuse to let them pass anybody by as they release the incredible and timely An Hour To Anywhere.
After five years in which various tracks have surfaced on E.P.s and at highly rated gigs from London to Liverpool and as far away as New Zealand, the album must be considered certainly well worth the wait and the foursome who have made this inspired music that lurks throughout the album as stars for the future. The names of Andrew Coogan, Romy Bylin, Steve Hitchcock and Mark Hitchcock will surely be as well-known as those that have come along from the capital in the last 50 years as time goes by.
Whether it is from the superior lyrics and vocals, the beating heart of the drums which in parts were with a gentle outlook but superb savage-like swagger supplied by Andrew Coogan, one of the best combinations of saxophone and keyboards around and guitars that feel as if they have been possessed by some errant spirit with a mischievous unspoken ability to get the best sound available from the instrument, the players have laid down tracks that with fortune on their side will be looked back at years to come as if it is a defining moment in music.
Kicking off the album with the moody Better Than Before, immediately strikes the listener as if being coaxed into a bar room brawl with the promise that you can just sit there and watch, nothing will happen to you but then realising you have been thrust full on to the action. Melic may have invited you in but they will make sure that you’re not leaving without taking several of the detractors and naysayers with you. By the time they have played the exciting Nowhere I’d Rather Be, the sublime He Was A Fighter, the drip like effect that excellence alludes to in Through The Storm, the feeling of sensationalism in Pacific and the adorable Inhaling Butterflies, the listener will feel so energised by the encounter that it’s conceivable they will be asking to have another go whilst rolling up their sleeves and snarling at those few bystanders left in the building.
If a week is a long time in politics and a day can last forever, then An Hour To Anywhere is a journey worth taking and savouring each and every minute.
An Hour To Anywhere is released on August 5th on Beatnik Geek Records.
Ian D. Hall