This is the 40th anniversary re-issue of Around The Bend the second album By Love Tractor, the legendary Athens Georgia indie pop band, who stood out by being mainly an instrumental band, Love Tractor was founded in 1979 by art students Armistead Wellford, Mike Richmond, and Mark Cline as a vehicle to entertain their art school pals in the then backwater college town of Athens. Around The Bend is the first of two Hanoi Rocks references on this album, that if they are there are rather oblique.
The album opens with Highland Sweetheart sounding like classic Love Tractor very much in a similar vein to the material on the band's debut album only with some almost buried backing vocals over the crystalline jangling guitars, with additional strummed acoustic guitar and sinuous rhythm section.
Cutting Corners could easily have been on the band debut, the jangly guitars are present as is some interesting percussion that if separated out could be used on a drum and bass tune, this glistens with clear precise production, it intrigues as almost the polar opposite of Hanoi Rocks classic Cutting Corners.
Spin Your Partner is medium paced song for dragging your other half onto the dancefloor, as the first clear vocals of the album implore us all to Spin Our Partners round and round, as the guitar figures also go round and round.
Pretty starts to build from the most basic guitar part, as a two-note bass line comes in followed by the drums this is building with shards of guitar into a Pretty indie evocation of unspoken desire.
Fat Birds is I hope a tune for nice plump turkeys about to be plucked and cooked for thanksgiving, rather than any overweight ladies they might be chasing after with this upbeat slice of jangle pop.
Paint (Your Face And Stand In The Corner) has the first real musical change of direction as the guitar is more crunchy with more effects making this a far more explorative tune, this is indie dub with odd piano interspersions as we wonder what we've done to be told to stand in the corner once more.
Slum Dungeon doesn't sound like any of the music I've heard played in Dungeons over the years, but this could be the sound of damp coursing down the walls, black Mold guitar spores, plaster cracking drums with woodworm infested basslines, or it could be a typical Love Tractor Instrumental.
J.E.B. Pharaohs is I assume about an American sports team of some sort, with this being the rather odd music for them to walk out to play with, as the vocals seem to be asking you back for some after club activities, as the guitars get squigglier as the lyrics parrot well known phrases, to be blurted out as you get more out of it, Right On brother Right On let those guitars battle it out.
The album closes with Timberland that has the sound of the call of the log cabin, hiking while going out to feel that Timber, over the seductive beats and spry guitar as a cool backdrop to all those checked shirts.
Find out more at https://lovetractor.com/ https://www.facebook.com/luvtractor/ https://www.instagram.com/lovetractorathens/
