The Loose Salute - Tuned To Love
The Loose Salute were always going to have at least one foot firmly rooted in the past, seeing as their singer-songwriter-drummer Ian McCutcheon was in beloved alt.country band Mojave 3, and he discovered his fellow front-person Lisa Billson whilst she sang Dylan covers. In fact, even this album is itself a re-release from last year - both times coming out in June. This in itself is a clue as to what you're going to find listening to 'Tuned To Love' - a plethora of retro-tinged summer songs (even the album cover has two people vomiting rainbows for God's sake).
From the whimsical feel of opener 'Death Club', complete with surf organs and bell chimes to traditional country rock 'n rollin' of 'Turn The Radio Up' this album is all about the summer. Beaches are mentioned more than once, and it seems that the Cornwall-based foursome are trying to shoehorn every possible old genre in. Foot-stomping melodies in 'From Head To Sandy Toes', '50s girl group oohs and ahs, Spanish trumpet solos (yes, really) and psychedelic breakdowns all feature - it really all could get a little confusing.
But between all of this lie some brilliant tunes and, unexpectedly, its not usually the established Mr McCutcheon who delivers them, but the wonderful voice of Miss Billson. Whether its her whispered vocals on the slow-burning and frankly beautiful 'Cold Water', or the staccato puches in 'Through The Stratosphere To The Bars' (which could equally be referencing Willie Nelson, early Elton John or the theme tune to Only Fools and Horses) it never fails to beguile the listener. McCutcheon has his moments too though: 'Ballad of the Dumb Angel' is a lilting tearjerker that more than shows his abilities in the vocal department. The band themselves are accomplished too, playing a multitude of instruments (the newly fashionable steel guitar makes many an appearance throughout), but, just as in the original country music scene, it really is all about the front people.
There are problems with this album though, chiefly being that this is nothing you won't have heard before. Every song sounds like it could be someone else's work, and whilst it may be so that The Loose Salute's aim may never have been to craft something original, it never seems that McCutcheon has even attempted to stray from what he had done previously with Mojave 3. Some of the songs don't come off quite as well as others: 'Why'd We Fight' goes on far too long without ever seeming to move off of the level it started at. For a song that's over five minutes long, you'd expect some sort of build-up, but it never comes.
And this seems much the problem with the album as a whole, there really is no absolute standout track, no peak moment. 'Tuned To Love' really is made for lazy summer days, nothing to make you jump out of your seat, but certainly a collection of mellow, sunny tracks to lie in a hammock and drink lemonade to, and in this respect The Loose Salute have made a brilliant record for it. Now go outside and get some fresh air!
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