Attic Thieves is one of those rare records that seems to inhabit its own private universe.
The Pierrot-like figure on the cover suggests a carnivalesque world and this is matched sonically by cascading keyboards and oom-pah rhythms of the songs.
Ralfe Band revolve around a duo of Oly Ralfe who sings, plays keyboards and guitar and Andrew Mitchell on bass and percussion. Ralfe is the composer of the songs and instrumentals although some additional writing is by Mitchell.
The Mighty Boosh are fans. Noel Fielding describes their hybrid sound as "Beautiful, angular music that envelops your body like an erotic triffid " while Julian Barratt calls it "psychopathic folk waltz music".
Their sound has obvious roots in folk with accordian , mandolin and a mainly acoustic sound but they take pleasure in twisting and distorting any traditional elements. The prominence of the piano adds a quirky music hall feel to the raw ingredients.
On the opening track we encounter an "immaculate old undertaker" (Open Eye') while we "stumble in the graveyard" on the second tune 'Stumble'). In 'Platform Boy', trains are suspended because someone has thrown himself on the line.
This fascination with all things dark and macabre are also evident in Ralfe's sketches that illustrate the album sleeve and feature in the videos that can be viewed on their website. These are more playfully gothic than seriously scary - more Sleepy Hollow than Blair Witch; appropriately enough since something of Danny Elfman's roller coastic movie soundtracks is present in the mix.
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Instrumentals - 'Big Head', 'Attics' and 'Two Lorenzos' - are far from being fillers but are integral to the the skewed atmosphere of the record. This is perfectly matched by the surreal lyrics. On 'Ice on my hands' for instance the opening lines are "Follow me now to a silent place where only insects fight" while in 'Mirror Face', Oly sings "we'll drink to the bone and gamble our lives for a bag of stones"
The Ralfe Band revel in these eccentricities and the charm and humour of the songs helps to avoid the pretentiousness that often goes with this territory.
There are influences from American freak folk but it is an English record to the core. In the end you can't help but be captivated by their strangely fascinating world of dark corners and grizzly deeds.
Band website: www.ralfeband.com/
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