An album with the ability to divide not only the masses but also the two halves of my own brain. Whilst only a surly, narrow-minded cynic or a man without ears could fail to be won over by Captain’s cheerily overblown production values, the uncorked euphoria and the meteor shower arrangements of tracks like ‘Hazelville’, ‘Glorious’ and ‘Broke’, the sceptic in me writhes around in confusion, totally unable to come down one way or another on whether or not it actually detracts from its inner loveliness. Prefab Sprout and the Dream Academy used to stump me in the same way, and these are no idle association given the glossy, treacle-thick arrangements of both. What is gained by way of drama, is lost by way of sincerity and humour, and whilst we’re not looking for laughs exactly, I’d like to hear some of Captain’s more gentle offerings like ‘Build A Life’ and ‘Western High’ without all the shimmering flaky layers and all the hi-octane drama. What it cries out for is some humility, something to ground it within the blood and bone of a real personality. As it stands the lofty, towering sighs of the synthesizers, the thunderous drums and the endlessly twinned harmonies of the perfectly acceptable ‘Frontline’ make a mountain of the proverbial molehill. Producer Trevor Horn takes the earnest, whimsical subject matter of love, loss and longing and turns it into an epic. A transformation as indelicate as taking a beach stone and polishing it up as diamond. All the character and candour of the compositions (which is there in abundance should you be willing to look) is swamped by the hubris and sterility of too many hands in the studio.
Stripped down to its basics: a tune, a tie and a twinkle and ‘This Is Hazelville’ makes for a very uplifting debut. Just don’t make it so bleedin’ widescreen next time, eh? A 4:3 aspect ratio will be fine.