Jacob Moore’s assured vocal performance shines as one of the many highlights of this excellent ten-track debut album by Australian quintet Bell Weather Department. On Hole in the Sky, for instance, the core melody is delivered in the form of some rather snazzy “ah-oo” vocals that float across the intriguing and diverse sounds whipped up convincingly by this talented band. For a sparking slice of addictively catchy and sonically inventive powerpop check out the melodic powerhouse that is End of the Yellow Brick Road or crank up the volume on the thumpingly good Voodoo Hoodoo which features pummelling grit ‘n’ glitter guitar riffs that are guaranteed to blow the roof off the house. If your tastes lie more in the direction of richly textured and decidedly majestic soaring soundscapes allow Bell Weather Department to fly you to the stars on the atmospheric The Pursuit of Blu,e which manages to pull off the unlikely feat of achieving epic status in less than five minutes. This achievement is a key example of Bell Weather Department’s ability to construct monolithic sounds and rich textures whilst remaining sufficiently restrained so that the songs are never lost in the heady embrace of experimentation.
BY GRAHAM BLACKLEY
Best Track: Voodoo Hoodoo
If You Like These, You’ll like This: Given To The Wild THE MACCABEES
In A Word: Inventive
