Weavels - The Living Puzzle

There's something quintessentially English about this music: as absurd as Monty Python or The Goons and as quietly subversive as the films of Lindsay Anderson, while never drawing unnecessary attention to the diffident brilliance of its three protagonists. It's true that the whole set fizzes with a surreal humour (does Mick Beck genuinely expect not to raise a smile when he puts the swanee whistle to his lips?), but it's directed and kept aloft by some devilishly accomplished musicianship. Hear how Alex Ward digs into frenzied shredding of the electric guitar, while Chris Cundy's clarinet swoops and shrieks like an angry peregrine falcon, and Beck's bassoon pokes around in the undergrowth - while all three investigate different aspects of the same puzzle. The trio's debut album promised much. This is a fine follow-up. DANIEL SPICER, WIRE

Chris Cundy (bass clarinet)
Mick Beck (bassoon and whistles)
Alex Ward (electric guitar)