Elemental - Single

Ian Crause's debut release on the highly collectable Tugboat label comes as something of a disappointment, but that disappointment is nearly overshadowed by a knowledge of what could follow. Considering his work in the highly experimental Disco Inferno and the structurally conventional nature of both songs included here, first listens leave one wishing for more imaginative material and that wild sense of pop destruction found in DI's later works. However, repeated listens do reveal nuanced production, like chart-aimed New Order with bizarre twists and wrinkles. Crause's songwriting skills were often overlooked in his previous outfit (or they were buried amidst a wash of effects), and it seems he's bringing that to the fore now. His voice has lost the awkward world-weariness and has gained more tunefulness, although his upper register almost sounds like Weird Al. At any rate, Crause has truly gone pop. Yet this single still sounds a weird and idiosyncratic. (Anglophiles will be happy to hear the presence of Dif Juz/Jesus and Mary Chain/Moose alum Richard Thomas on drums.)