Strange Times – The Chameleons
Loreto college, 1984. About three months after threespires had left if I remember correctly from previous discussions. I overheard somebody talking about The Chameleons. I didn’t hear enough to know whether it was good or bad, but I suspect the former. The reason I mention this is that this was my only previous reference point for this band.
When this came up for nomination, I feared just another bunch of indie warblers from Manchester, and the first track, whilst perfectly listenable, did nothing to change my opinion.
But then came “Caution”, and “Tears”, and “Soul in Isolation”, and “Swamp Thing” and I wondered when this tremendous run of tracks would come to an end. The second half of the album doesn’t quite live up to the first, but it was enough to give me something to get my teeth into.
“Caution” has the kind of lugubrious vibe that I love, and I could well imagine The Doors producing this track. But no, it’s a band from my hometown. I love the way that a lot of these tracks aren’t three-minute jangle-pop throwaways. They don’t appear hurried and there’s enough time for the instrumentals to play their way into your subconsciousness.
There’s always room for a good acoustic track and “Tears” was a good fit here. “Soul In Isolation” is brilliant. What sounds like half of the riff to the “House of the Rising Sun” gives way to Japanese-sounding synths and then powerful guitars as Mark Burgess’ tortured voice increases in intensity.
Soul in isolation
I can hear you breathing down the hall
And then later
Back to the trees, Back to the trees
Just another song documenting a singer’s internal turmoil, but the music and lyrics work really well together.
With these tracks, it’s clear that Strange Times is an album of drama, and this is played out both in the lyrics and the tempo changes.
Elsewhere, “Time, The End of Time” has a lovely coda, “In Answer” has a nice orchestral start and then gets into a lively guitar groove and “Childhood” is similarly pleasant and upbeat.
The album cover is very good too. It has a bit of Monty Python and Salvador Dali about it.
I must admit that my initial surprise at how pleasantly melodic and listenable this album sounds was worn down a little on subsequent listens by the cookie-cutter indie wails, but I still enjoyed much of my three spins through what is a beloved cult classic. Could have been an 8 but I think 7/10 feels right.
Note that my review is based on the album’s original 10 tracks and not the bonus tracks that follow (although I did listen to the full arrangement of “Tears”).
