Errors - It’s Not Something But It Is Like Whatever

Posted 12th Jun 2008 in Album Reviews, Errors by Chris Cope | Rock Action |

Errors - It’s Not Something But It Is Like Whatever

It is perhaps rare for a wholly instrumental album (well, in this case, wholly instrumental plus a sprinkling of spoken word samples) to engage the listener's attention from start to finish, but Errors' debut certainly bucks this trend. It's been a long time coming though, seeing the band formed in 2004, but perhaps like a nice fruity wine it's taken this Scottish quartet a wee while to come of age. Look at their disography though and there's been a steady stream of potent material over the years, so I guess we can give them the benefit of the doubt.

It's hard to pigeonhole this album into one specific genre, so don't bother. It's a bit electronic, it's a bit indie, it's a bit new-wave and its a little bit prog-rock. Shove it into a melting pot and what you get is a rather intriguing 44 minute musical journey. 'Dance Music' is a sprightly opener and sets the tone nicely for the other nine tracks - it manages to lull yet excite and offers a sort of a solitary, introspective disco inside the listener's head. The marriage of real instruments and soaring electronics throughout the album is a fruitful one and shines on the subsequent song 'National Prism', which faithfully manages to provide the melody in the absence of a singer.

Tracks like 'Still Game' and 'The Bagpipes' exhibit their more progressive side and show us that they're not afraid to meander off into tranquil jams and enter crepuscular-soundscape mode. The drumming shines as it shifts in and out of regular timing but the music rarely distances the listener. Honorable mention also goes to 'Toes', one of the singles off the album, which features a juddering Biffy Clyro-esque guitar assault, and also to the freaky 'Cutlery Drawer' which features George Pringle and the only vocals on the album.

However, perhaps it is this lack of vocals that stops this album achieving that oft-mentioned 'X-factor' status - some of the content may be deemed a bit 'filler'. Despite this, each track offers great depth and you're assured of of something fresh with the passing of each minute. 'It's Not Something But It Is Like Whatever' is a stellar debut and one which offers great hope for the future for these four men from Glasgow.