A double album, 22 songs from an unsigned band that focuses mostly on the sound forged in the 1960s seems foolhardy at the very least. In a world where the average attention span of a new single release is about 2 mins and apparently nobody listens to albums anymore is either commercial fcking suicide (their words) or just like The Clash, the most punk rock thing to do right now. For me it’s the latter. Thus this is my review of 2023’s best punk album release, punk in ethos if not in sound.
Four Sides Of The Circle is The Mariners 3rd album in as many years and not only is this a brilliant name for the album it encapsulates everything the band have been about these last few years but with nobs on, it’s their magnum opus, their White Album in fact, and you know what it’s fricking awesome. Really really awesome.
Each side of the album is just rammed full of some of the best songs you’ll hear in many a year. After the intro of Roseleigh you have 3 in a row of classic Mariners, Walk in the rain, In the Summertime and Nobody told her, it’s one hell of a way to start an album and they put you in a great mood immediately.
Autumn Leaves and Love is the word, follow the high quality, pulling in the influences of The Kinks and The Zombies amongst others. There’s another short interval tune, Indian Summer before we are onto two of the standout tracks for me, Catch the morning sun is a more downbeat track with a brilliant guitar from Paul which makes it sound like a spaghetti western vibe or The Coral which I know is a key influence on the band, it’s as good as the scousers. Building into a brilliant organ solo merging with the guitars it’s something special. London, 1961 is their Waterloo Sunset a lovely tale about a couple meeting by chance in London in 1961 of course. It’s beautiful.
If the album ended there you’d be satisfied, but it’s not even half way yet. Lost single Lola Emmeline is up next and works wonderfully nestled between the tracks, it really deserves more attention.
Recent single Flowers in my garden is straight after and it’s a pure summer belter with a fantastic chorus, in many ways it’s the song that encapsulates the whole sound of the band in just over 3 mins.
Songs come in and go like turning the pages of your favourite book, each one telling a wonderful chapter of the overall story. The lyrics of Getting Better are especially worth listening too, summing up what it’s like to be in a long term relationship or marriage perfectly.
Before long your onto the tomorrow never knows of the album, The Way I Feel is a sitar driven, freakbeat, psychedelic song that shows another side to the boys, The Chemical Brothers or indeed the Invisible Squirrel could turn this into a monster dance track, not that they’d let them of course. It’s fantastic nonetheless.
Without going into all the tracks I will end by commenting on two more, Rainmaker a song as catchy as anything they’ve ever done with it’s organ front and centre and another great riff from Paul. It has to be a single.
Just a Dream is one of the last tracks, a 7 minute epic starting with just Luke’s vocals and a simple piano, it’s very much a combination of all great album ending songs slowly building in an almost church choir type way before strings come in and some fantastic bass lines from other Luke, “Is it all just a dream” sings Luke before being backed by the choir as it builds and builds to it’s finale. Really rather wonderful.
The album ends with British Summer but it’s certainly not a wash out and is a fitting way to end.
There it is then 22 tracks of the highest quality all written and performed and produced by the band, carefully selected into a track listing that keeps you interested and takes you on a journey.
As Stanley Unwin would say Deep Joy in the tummybold.
Go and listen to it now!
https://themariners.bandcamp.com/album/four-sides-of-the-circle-album
The album is out now from all good gramophones and wireless devices.
PNL
Michael
The Rebirth Of Cool 