The Coral's jocular self-titled debut kicked up quite a flurry of excitement
when it washed ashore in the summer of 2002. Many reviewers gave a hearty
cry of "Avast Ye Maties" when they discovered the band was from
the picturesque seaside village of Hoylake, a deep-water anchorage in
the borough of Wirral. Not since the Beatles, or perhaps even Echo &
the Bunnymen, has a young band from England's blustery western coast caused
this much commotion. Other critics have focused on their ages; at 21,
lead singer/guitarist James Skelly was the oldest when this album was
recorded, but the rest of these landlubbers were considerably younger,
averaging somewhere closer to 19. The fantastic voyage that is The Coral,
however, is the real discovery. The album begins with a two-minute psych-rock
sea shanty, "Spanish Main," which bursts forth with a frothy
and joyous refrain that sounds inspired by Treasure Island or Disney's
Pirates of the Caribbean, perhaps. Along the way, the boys pick their
way through somewhat-discarded flotsam and jetsam genres (mostly from
the '60s), including 1964-era Merseybeat, horn-driven ska, fuzzed-out
acid rock, and Brit-pop psychedelia. The aforementioned critics have fallen
all over themselves trying to distill the Coral's various influences,
name-checking a wide range of West Coast bands -- the Doors, Love, the
Beach Boys, the Mothers, Quicksilver Messenger Service, and even the Banana
Splits -- and even tossing in a handful of Londoners, like Syd Barrett-era
Pink Floyd and the Action. Others have opted to categorize the Coral as
sounding closer, at least in spirit, to the Beta Band, Shack, or -- a
personal favorite -- "a scouse Primal Scream on a skiffle tip"
(former Shack drummer Alan Wills, by the way, is their manager and manages
their label, Deltasonic, as well). "Shadows Fall" is where this
adventurous tale really finds its sea legs; the Top 30 U.K. single features
an eccentric salmagundi of styles and sounds, including barbershop quartet
vocals, Madness-style pop-ska, Russian Cossack folk, and a subtle Morricone-esque
harmonica. The result is a bit jarring, but there's a fervent originality
at work here, despite all of the referencing of the halcyon past. "Dreaming
of You" is probably an even better example of what the Coral have
to offer, with strong lead vocals and suitably cheeseball organ. "Simon
Diamond" is effervescent 1967-style British psych-pop (Nirvana U.K.
or Kaleidoscope U.K., take your pick), while the rambunctious "Skeleton
Key" blends Zappa-esque guitars, serpentine Middle Eastern melodies,
and flavorful horns. In addition to a massive heaping of critical praise,
the Coral also managed to connect with an audience who plunked down enough
gold doubloons to help this album land in the U.K.'s Top Ten charts. The
Coral was subsequently nominated for the Mercury Music Prize.
(by Bryan Thomas, All
Music Guide)
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