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E.T. TO THE BEAT
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"The record is, like, full of spacey guitars - which means it'll be good for when it gets transmitted into space." |
Marcus Palmer, floppy fringed singer and tambourine rattler with THE SUNCHARMS, explains: "We want to be the first Earth band that aliens get into." |
"We want to be the first band to play on the Moon," declares John Malone, carrot-cropped guitarist, part-time paperboy, and keenly anxious to go where no fret-fettler has gone before. |
Feet firmly on the ground in terrestrial Sheffield, John and Marcus together with Chris Ridley (drums), Richard Farnell (bass) and Matt Neale (guitarist and film student), have been nurturing the Suncharm Sound for around 18 months. |
Recently signed to the Norwich-based Wilde Club label, home of The Catherine Wheel, The Suncharms will soon make their effervescent vinyl debut. Guitar lines tripping over each other in their haste to escape the grooves, the four-track 'Sparkle' EP enthusiastically proclaims The Suncharms to be high-flying dealers in gilt-edged tunes. |
"We're into melody," confirms Marcus, "though there's a definite sense of melancholy underlying the, erm, 'Utopian' visions in the lyrics. A good record creates emotion - sadness, happiness, whatever. And that's what we do." |
The band cite the lack of conformity in musical tastes amongst themselves as being the prime generator of what they regard as their unique style. "Like you can tell you [sic] a lot of bands at the moment - your Slowdives, Mooses, Chapterhouses. . . they've all got the same records as each other," hazards Richard. "Whereas we're all into different things, so nobody's been able to put us in a box yet." |
Ask them to name names, and The Suncharms slowly reveal they are proud possessors of records by, amongst others, Pale Saints, Hendrix, Ultra Vivid Scene, and hey, the West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band. |
This eclecticism is reflected in the EP track 'Reflections', with its blend of acoustic guitars, spooky wailing, schizo changes in tempo, and lost-in-a-long-tunnel vocals. As Richard says, "it's quite freaky, and almost uncomfortable to listen to." |
Marcus, attempting to express what The Suncharms actually do that sets them apart, and why they're going to be, erm, charming you in the months to come, smiles serenely and concludes, "You're in a band because you want to make a record that is 'perfection', you hear other groups and think, if only it had that little bit extra - well, we try and take 'that little bit extra' and put it into our songs." |
Jonny Thatcher |
NME, 13th July 1991. |
Thanks to Jo Fisher for this clipping. |