RUNNING IN THE GUTTER

Babal have found a new home at Fruits de Mer, and I can definitely see how their strange angular psychedelic style fits in well with the rest of that eclectic roster. Karen Langley (vocals, lyrics, arrangements), Rob Williams (guitars, guitar synth, programming), and Jon Sharp (drums) have now been joined by two guests with Paul Smith on acoustic bass and Chris Gill (Band of Rain) on bass. Apparently, Chris is a good friend of the band and gigged with them last year. Babal are back with a sound which in the current market is undoubtedly their own, bringing in elements of both Beefheart and Talking Heads while then mixing their own unique style, so they sound like no-one else, yet at the same time have some very powerful messages to share, all wrapped in angular melodic music which is of their own making with a soundscape bringing in the listener so the words can take hold of the brain.

The opening song, "One Big Family" is a sad indictment on social media and what it has done to humanity, "eye sockets sore, mind in chaos, thoughts flying round, like a bird in a cage, manic with facts and terrible rage! Nowhere to go, I can't turn the page!". It is not unusual for me to be sat in a coffee shop and see a group of people sat at a table nearby, all invested in their phones as opposed to talking to the real humans next to them, and while social media has undoubtedly been a boon in many ways, I do believe that like vaping we will not understand the true evils for many years yet to come. Other themes include mortality, the plight of the planet and the ignorance of many, poverty consciousness and more.

Given what Rob and Karen have gone through health wise, it would be very easy for them to sit back on their laurels and reflect on a music career which has always been exhilarating and exciting, yet with their seventh album as Babal, and their eleventh overall (they were originally known as Wise Children, then as Babble) they have produced one of their most cohesive, immediate and socially aware albums yet. We need bands like Babal, who refuse to let us sit back and let our brains rot but instead want us to actually think and then go out and do something positive. Superb.

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