Artist: Klammer
Title: The Day Before Yesterday
Genre: Post Punk / Alt Rock / Rock / Gothic Rock
Release Date: 25th February 2022
Label: Heavy Metal Records
Album Review
Back in November I reviewed the single ‘Broken Dreams In A Crashing Car’ by this pan Yorkshire four-piece and I thoroughly enjoyed the aural snack offering that was handed to me. Today I have been listening to the whole meal. And on first listen I mostly retain the same feelings I had when listening to the single. But first, a bit of back story. KLAMMER were formed in 2014 by producer Steve Whitfield who has worked with the likes of THE CURE, THE MISSION and JANE WEAVER. They’ve released three albums to wide acclaim and had airplay on BBC Radio 6 Music. In the six years up to the Covid lockdowns they played all over the UK with bands such as THE CHAMELEONS, THE MEMBRANES, THE SKIDS, THE UNDERTONES and THE RUTS DC. In 2021 they signed a deal with Revolver Records and their imprint, Heavy Metal Records, releasing the aforementioned track ‘Broken Dreams In A Crashing Car’ accompanied by a video.
The album’s opening track ‘Pass The Test’ has a Cult like rolling punch to it that wouldn’t be out of place on the ‘Love’ album before it gives way to ‘I Really Really Want To Believe’ which asks the question: “What does it all mean?” - the familiar RED LORRY YELLOW LORRY like execution pushing things along. ‘Progress’ (or the lack of) is bass lead with an ebb and flow like riding a bike over hump back bridges before scooshing out of the dip onto another hump back bridge. This is darkly groovy, baby! ‘Broken Dreams In A Crashing Car’ is the single I reviewed before Christmas. You can review that elsewhere on the website. My feelings have not changed at all, “the production is not overdone, it sounds like a perfectly put together aural chiaroscuro”.
Rounded and full drums aided by the hip level bass punch melding the parts into a satisfying whole ‘While You Sleep’ reminds me of the band HAPAX. But at the same time, it’s different. There’s a satisfying warmth to it, also breezy, like a bedroom at night, the moon shines through the window lighting the edge of the bed whilst a gauze curtain dances in the light breeze from the open window. The guitar part is like a finger tapping you on the back of the neck whilst you sleep, you brush it off but the tapping returns. Whilst ‘Broken Dreams In A Crashing Car’ was down in the hips, this is up in the shoulders whilst you bend down low. The vibe is furrowed. The last notes taking on a faint ‘Japanese Whispers’ tone before disappearing!
‘The Blind Leading The Blind’ is another sonically pleasing and brilliant track. It’s straight backed, chin jutting awesomeness. Its shadows and blackness at ground level with icy downlights piercing from the heavens. So far so good! The experience is a good one. But then ‘The Insider’ starts. I’m not as enamoured with this as I have been with the previous tracks and my mind starts wandering. The rhythms are not quite doing it for me. The bass still punches a path through the track and the guitars do their thing, my interest comes back, nope it’s gone again, its back, nope gone again. But as if my mind is being read, ‘A New Direction’ grabs my arm and a voice in my head says “Let’s go over there, it's time for a change”, a new distraction. The voice is right, I do! I’m now daydreaming in a good way, not distracted.
Up to this point I’ve found the production to be clear and spaced with vocals I can hear without straining or EQ fiddling, but ‘Oblivion’ is a bit misty. The vocals are a little harder to make out, not much but enough to force more listening effort. And the melody sounds familiar! There’s about a millisecond where I hear something familiar and it goes, later on coming back for another millisecond. That’s not enough time to make a connection, which is annoying me… ‘I Wish I Could Bring You Back’ sounds like a cross between THE CHAMELEONS and early DEAD OR ALIVE, the simple bass ably backing up the warbled baritone. I’ve looked at a photo of vocalist Paul Strickland, I don’t think long crimped hair pulled over to one side, a nose ring and a rubber swimsuit would be his thing!
Anyway, the album is winding down now. ‘Heartworm’ is another track that doesn't do it for me, it doesn’t grab me by the throat. Nor does ‘Limbic Pastime’. They sound like, ok, lyrically all the tracks here have to be here because they are all part of the same / similar theme. But sonically I’m losing it around track 10. Maybe these last three tracks ‘Heartworm’, ‘Limbic Pastime’ and ‘Alone’ should have been kept for another release? 10 tracks would have been a better number to finish on in my view.
Overall, this is a good album. It is well crafted and constructed. There’s space within the compositions, a dark space, which allows the album to breathe. All the elements are here because they need to be here, nothing is a needless embellishment. Until the last three tracks that is. It’s like I've just eaten a meal presented on a nice plate with interesting cutlery. The food is well presented, well cooked and smells nice. But there’s way too much and I’m stuffed. Maybe a little more seasoning too? If you like THE CHAMELEONS, THE CULT (LOVE), RED LORRY YELLOW LORRY or even early DEAD OR ALIVE I recommend giving this spin.
Tracklist
01. Pass The Test
02. I Really Really Want To Believe
03. Progress (Or The Lack of)
04. Broken Dreams In A Crashing Car
05. While You Sleep
06. The Blind Leading The Blind
07. The Insider
08. A New Direction
09. Oblivion
10. I Wish I Could Bring You Back
11. Heartworm
12. Limbic Pastime
13. Alone
Line-up
Poss – Lead Vocals and Guitar
Steve Whitfield – Guitar and Vocals
Mike Addy – Bass
Bruno Almeida – Drums
Website
www.klammer.co.uk
Cover Picture
Rating
Music: 7.5
Sound: 7.5
Total: 7.5 / 10
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