Mike Hall – Nothing Stands Still (1157 Records) (13th Floor Album Review)

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Pluto bass man Mike Hall steps out from the rhythm section with this, his debut solo album, titled Nothing Stands Still.

Bass players releasing solo albums have a chequered past. For every Paul McCartney and Sting, there is a John Entwistle or Bill Wyman. Fortunately Mike is more McCartney than Wyman.

In addition to his work with Pluto, Mike Hall has a long list of credits, playing with the likes 0f Anna Coddington, SJD, Mulholland, Tami Neilson, Dimmer, Finn Andrews, The Bads, Tim Finn, Nightchoir, The Brunettes.

Most recently he has been party of the  “Come Together Band” playing classic albums by The Beatles, The Stones, U2, Neil Young and Led Zeppelin along with drummer Alistair Deverick, keyboard player Matthias Jordan, guitarist Brett Adams and all-rounder Jol Mulholland, all of whom appear on this album.

In fact, musical director Jol Mulholland is producer/engineer/guitarist and whatever else needs doing.

As I drop the needle on track one, side one (yes, I have a vinyl copy) it becomes immediately apparent that Mike Hall has learned from everyone and everything around him. Can You Get Me Out begins with a “watery” guitar sound…is it flanged? I’m not a musician, but I know what I like, and this is it.

Hall’s voice is wrapped in a soft cushion of reverb as he sings, “Here’s a note, that I made, when I saw the shrink, I can’t hold it together much longer”.  The instrumentation, the voice and the subject matter remind me of Bike, Andrew Brough’s post-Straightjacket Fits band that only managed one full-length album.

But it was a good one, and so is this.

The nine original tunes are all uniformly melodic, slightly downbeat and memorable. First single, Stop Draggin’ Me Round is a perfect example, as is the following number, The Sun Never Came Up, closing out side 1 with what sounds like a nod to Alex Chilton’s Big Star.

Side two carries on with more of the same, and that is meant as a compliment. Mike and Jol have established a lovely sound and each song somehow builds of the previous. Guitar ace Brett Adams lets loose during Time, while still maintaining the Bike/Big Star vibe.

The album closes with Nothing To Do, a warm, reflective song with another killer chorus and a beautiful melody plus some slightly-psychedelic backwards masking.

The story goes that Mike was finally motivated to make this record after he lost a hard drive containing songs he had written but not recorded over the years. Faced with the prospect of losing them forever he wracked his brain and the result is now here for all to enjoy.

Marty Duda

 

NOTHING STANDS STILL album out Friday 16 August
Vinyl & Digital pre-order
Album pre save
Purchase show tickets via UnderTheRadar

NOTHING STANDS STILL album release gig 

Wednesday 18 September @ Freida Margolis, Grey Lynn (R18)
band members Jol Mulholland, Matthias Jordan, Brett Adams, Michael Franklin-Browne
Special guest Xani Hall
Tickets on sale now from Under The Radar $25 + bf.  Limited Capacity 

 

 

Marty Duda
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