Something's wrong. Or more specifically, in the heads of The Delgados, something's never been quite right. As 'Repeat Failure' is unleashed, simmering like a surrogate 'Mogwai Fear Satan', then exploding into a huge wall of noise, it's a hint that we shouldn't pry into the making of The Delgados' difficult third album. As the squealing guitars abate, Alun Woodward and Emma Pollock quietly chorus a clue: "We may be loved ones", they sing, "but we are disturbed ones".
Fresh from recording with Dave Fridmann, the producer who brought Mogwai's 'CODY' and Mercury Rev's 'Deserter's Songs' into stark focus, it was to be hoped that his guiding hand would settle The Delgados' fractured sound into something coherent. But tonight, the delicate orchestral glide of last year's 'Peloton' is forsaken for its noisy aberrations, like the blistering avant-jazz of 'Blackpool', where Woodward disappears offstage to tamper with a sampler, and Pollock tears huge Sabbath riffs from her guitar.
Meanwhile, the new songs come untitled, unannounced and understated, wilting in such ebullient company. "The album's out in March - if we can get our act together," says Pollock, by way of explanation, just before an elegant 'Pull The Wires From The Wall' beckons a confusing evening to a close. Suddenly, that difficult third album seems more difficult than ever.
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