aaamusic | On 25, Nov 2011

Armellodie Records is proud to present Chris Devotion & The Expectations with Amalgamation & Capital, their rapid-fire debut album released on Monday 30th January 2012.

 

Chris Devotion’s story is as wired as his music, and there’s a strong sense that there’s no such thing as glory for this man unless it is by the most riff-slaying of means. Based in Glasgow, Scotland, Devotion cut his teeth executing riotous performances in such glamorous locations as a disused nunnery and a fetish club, garnering ringing endorsements along the way from his rock’n’roll peers (both John Reiss of Rocket From The Crypt fame and Titus Andronicus have openly declared their admiration).

 

At the turn of the decade Devotion employed the illustrious talents of The Expectations, a trio of suited-and-booted thrashers, to bolster the foundations of Devotion’s own high octane template. Please God, please Allah, please Ricardo Montalban, stand aside and let these men swagger!

 

All the showmanship and melodic charm is here from the off on the alluring, aural explosion of ‘A Modest Refusal’, the title being a nod to Jonathan Swift’s brilliant piece of satire A Modest Proposal. Devotion intimately frames a dwindling relationship (“lift a veil and the kindness is gone”) before ramping up the charge with some political lampooning (“Let me tell you that you should know better, when they say that we’re in this together”), a not so subtle dig at the current Conservative led UK coalition government.

 

What follows is an immaculate run of sharp-shooting, deeply confessional pop songs: ‘I Don’t Need You Anymore’ prompts one to ponder if break-ups are supposed to leave such catchy devastation in their wake, ‘Tell the Girl’ is chock full of pop-fuelled efforts to turn pining into loving (“we’ve all been a little obsessed, it’s only going to get you depressed”), and ‘I Need Your Touch’ perfectly captures the protagonist’s feelings of desire and insecurity (“I know that I act real tough but I need your touch”). As the protagonist in question is Chris Devotion, he can’t resist throwing in some good ol’ fashioned braggadocio for good measure (”You know that I’ve got the good stuff, I need your touch”).

 

We have the fired up and bitter ‘Our Mistake’, and the more contemplative punch of ‘The Girl is Leaving’. This track proves a broken heart can be a great leveller with Devotion announcing;

 

“You came with full faith and credit, you don’t regret it do you? Cause now you’re indebted, you learned a lesson though the lesson was cruel”

 

The economic and the interpersonal are the crux around which Amalgamation & Capital has been written. Devotion elaborates –

 

“Relationships (amalgamation) on a subconscious level are a matter of what we want from the other person (their capital); what they offer us. But in a more literal sense there is the economic meaning of these words and to a large degree I still believe that your life choice/options and how you relate to people is still influenced by class. So even relationship-y stuff still has an economic/power aspect“

 

Recorded and mixed with producer Andy Miller (Sons & Daughters, Life Without Buildings, The Delgados) at his own Gargleblast Studios in just ten days, Amalgamation & Capital was tracked at a furious pace, bringing about a whirlwind of sweltering performances. The Expectations perform with sheer intensity on ‘You’ve Got It All’, show power-chord prowess on pro-immigration thrasher ‘I’m Already Home’, country-punk’ stompin’ on a version of Woody Guthrie’s ‘I Ain’t Got No Home’, and get their drive-time swagger on for album centrepiece, ‘Blister’.

 

Ruminating on love, jealousy and betrayal, Devotion’s vocal theatrics tackle infidelity from all angles, from his burly croon on ‘It’s Not A Secret’, to his throat-rippin’ holler on ‘Pinhole Suit’. He doesn’t mince his words on the nouveau yuppie targeting, ‘Surveying the Young Professionals’ (“I hope you die like dogs, golf courses littered with corpses, let’s salute the good life”) , while his mouth is stuffed full of cheek on the oh so innocent ‘Laura Was Right’ (“She said it was big!”)

 

Devotion explains –

 

“I love those ‘50s songs where they sing something that sounds innocuous but it’s actually really dirty. Well, this is a song that at the start sounds really dirty, but is actually about something innocuous.”

 

With all the vibrancy and lack of any musical pretension, Devotion and his clan never sound obtuse. On the record’s shortest offering ‘Eyes Open’ (clocking in at a mere 54 seconds) and lengthiest, ‘Better Than This’ (just falling short of the 5-minute mark) the band strike a more desolate sound, be it through plucked acoustic lament on the former or hitting a big brash drawn-out stagger on the latter.

 

CD/EX are an effortless listen, from intense ballad to amped up rockers, from love songs to political point scoring, they never forget that all your favourite records are filled with memorable hooks and that there is always room for a new favourite band.

 

Amalgamation & Capital is classic and catching, released on Monday 30th January 2012 via Armellodie Records.