http://www.clashmusic.com/feature/city-best-rest

Merchandise – Album Sampler (Cityscape Records)

Reminding me of Squeeze and The Housemartins, this slightly effete light jazzy pop might appear deceptively simple but it’s well arranged and produced, almost guaranteed to have the listener skipping down a sun kissed Summer avenue. It sounds totally ideal for the soundtrack of any Working Title romantic comedy and places itself right in the territory of Everything But The Girl’s early gear. Great vocals, even better harmonies, nice keyboard stabs and well structured songs, Merchandise’s soulful, fluffy-ness is backed up by being well crafted and measured. All in all, a very good debut. James Masters

Not for them a musical template rendered dull by years of misuse, instead they’ve dragged in all sorts of instruments to create pared down movements with hints of Astrid Gilberto, The Go-Betweens and even a dash of St Germain.

And with liberal use of cheesy electronics, vibes, and George Benson-esque guitar, this strange hybrid has a surprisingly classy edge. It’s the sort of music you could imagine accompanying trippy visions in a wooded vale somewhere in the Forest of Dean . Check out Albino Rhino for proof, or even the final guitar wig out on Charlie Parker Was A Hobo, with its ever so slight nod to Santana.

There’s no doubt, Merchandise have got a touch of genius.

From Losing Today

Merchandise ‘Beautiful morning for a bad day’ (Album Sampler).

Both dippy and classy, how could we resist. Merchandise are duo Brad B. Wood and Conrad Astley who hail from Bolton who some where out there have already graced the good record buying folks with an album and a smattering of singles, none of which I’ll state categorically right here and now, that I’ve ever seen or heard.

Perhaps on the evidence of this four-track taster for their forthcoming album I ought to investigate, because this really is delightfully airey stuff, that’s quick on the ear and, if your not careful, one of those CD’s that’ll pass you by given that it so soft and un-intrusive in texture.

Merchandise’s sound is stolen from sunny days serenely idling in the shade, with the gentle trickling sound of a nearby river for company and the colourful magnificence of England’s green quilted garden for a spectacular visual feast, in terms of wayward nimbleness it’s a subdued and loving Pavement being suggestively caressed by the Boards of Canada. The parade of noodling rustic chords swan elegantly in their own daydream fashion while the rustle of shuffling beats happily kick their feet in the shallow end of the lakeside causing shimmering ripples.

Best cut of the four is the dreamy candour of the lively ‘For the Shore’, reminiscent of J Xaverre being brushed by the sugary floating space pop of ‘Sound Dust’ era Stereolab yet possessing that exquisite glaze of Cinerama as though force-fed on a diet of speed. If it’s something more blissful and willowy you’re after then ‘Beautiful morning for a bad day’ might be a perfect three-minute distraction, happily trippy and so impeccably fluffy and summery you can almost smell nature’s early morning countryside scent. Remember very early innocent sounds of China Crisis and the Pale Fountains well ’14.53’ does, undulating rhythms sensually stretched by delicately arranged tinkling ivories and subtle slide guitars combine to provide a warming and timeless take on Moviola.

Dare you resist, somehow I think not.

Bolton DIY lo-fi due Brad B Wood and Conrad Astley take their name from US punk rockers Fugazi but their acoustic reflections are far more whimsical.

With he kind of guitar noodling not heard since the last Stereolab album their sound is at times so delicate you feel they’re about to break.

But the gentility always stays on the right side of “coffee table.”

Another invaluable addition to any decent record collection. I first got wind of Merchandise (Bolton based duo Brad B. Wood and Conrad Astley) via a quite tasty three track pre-production teaser CD for “Lo-tech solutions to Hi-tech problems” a little while back, the sweet sound of rustic chords holding hands with dreamlike electronic backdrops on a bright spring morn that imagined the soft lull pop of China Crisis caressing with the folk-tronic fluffiness of J Xaverre and Tex La Homa.

‘Lo-tech’ is the duo’s second full length outing and is as illuminating and joyful a listening experience as that earlier taster CD promised, if not more so. Twelve sparkling gems that briefly come into your life and quickly disappear as though like spirits. Overall so soft it’s easy to mistakenly pass over them, unobtrusive happy pop that has a willowy texture and an aching aftertaste ‘Beautiful morning for a bad day’ shuffles tastily and quite possibly stands as the most lazy eyed three minutes you’ll have all year but it’s still ’14:53’ that acts as the albums centre point. Gloriously fusing as it does the misty eyed memories of Moviola to touching fragile softening pop motifs and marrying the whole union to an airy dusty porch lit setting where endless suns set and the air is alive with the sound of natures dozing song.

Elsewhere the wonderfully lush ‘For the Shore’ treats us to a spot of idling picnic pop, the soft rustic textures exude the smell of the countryside and the warmth of a cooling summers day, in between the gentle fix of the Go Betweens and ‘Swoon’ era Prefab Sprout are teased and pulled gently by delicate cosmic clouds of Stereolab. Gane and Co pop up again, if only in spirit not in body on the dreamy ‘Charlie Parker was a Hobo’, fuzzing riffs get down and dirty while being wooed by the irresistible ‘Sound Dust’ cool as you like keyboard backdrops. Both the muscularly up-tempo ‘Albino Rhino’ and ‘Sunday Song’ reveal a crafted melodic brain at large that’s been taking notes from Archer Prewitt’s ‘White Sky’ while the drifting love sick collage found wandering on the wounded ‘Winter’ (in between playing word games with Shakespeare) will have you melting and begging for more while the hooks take up refuge in your head to bounce around for what seems like an eternity. The finale which is inevitable comes in the form of the snoozing ‘Morning After’ which dresses us up in our best pyjamas and packs us off to bed to the sound of toy musical boxes and night night strings.

Simply perfect.

http://www.manamana.hu/kritika/kritika.html

Az angliai Bolton-ban tevékenykedõ Brad B Wood és Conrad Astley elsõ maxija furcsa mód még név nélkül jelent meg 1996-ban. Aztán végre sikerült valamit kitalálniuk, egy Fugazi szám címe után nevezték el magukat Merchandise-nak. 2000-ben a debütáló album is kicsúszott, amit még egy maxi követett. Zenéjük már akkor is az abszolút eklektika mintapéldánya volt és nincs ez másképp az új lemezen sem. Az elsõ szám egy rövid, instrumentális jazz, a következõ egy folkos pop dal, trip-hop ütemekkel megbolondítva. A késõbbiekben a pop balladák és fura elektronikus britpop fúziók váltják egymást. A zongora és az akusztikus gitár nagyjából minden számban jelen van. Nyugalom és pozitív életszemlélet jellemzi leginkább a Merchandise muzsikáját, amit az érdekes szövegek tesznek teljessé. Kora délutáni verõfényhez egy átbulizott este után ideális választás.

suefo

And the English translation from the writer himself:

Brad B wood and Conrad Astley who produce in Bolton, UK has strangely released their first single back in 1996 without any name. After a while, at least they have managed to work something out and named themselves to Merchandise after a Fugazi song. There was a debut album poped out too in 2000 followed by a single. Around this time their music has already been the exemplar of pure eclectica itself and this is not different on the new album either. The first track is short, instrumental jazz, the next one is folky pop song being hit upon by trip-hop beats. Later on pop ballads and funny electronic britpop fusions follow each other. The piano and the acoustic guitar appear basicly in every song. Calmness and positive way of thinking what typify the music of Merchandise which is being held in unity by the
interesting lyrics. Having partied over the night it is a perfect choice for early afternoon broad-daylight.

suefo