The Sturmey Archers: We Failed
LP | DL
Paddy Conner, singer, songwriter, and guitarist of the Waterside garage band The Sturmey Archers, was born near Canvey Island. His connection to Canvey’s most famous sons, pub-rock proto-punks Dr. Feelgood, is that his grandad worked with Wilko’s dad.
Geographically there is more to say. Wilko Johnson famously compared the bleak, industrial landscape of Canvey Island to the Mississippi Delta, saying both places carried a kind of mythical blues essence. Like Canvey Island, the Waterside region on the western shore of the River Test opposite Southampton, lives in the shadow of a huge oil refinery. Perhaps it’s no surprise, then, that the Sturmey Archers’ latest album explores themes of regret and failure. Garage-rock and raw rhythm-and-blues thrive in that emotional territory.
The record opens with the confrontational Theme from Sturmey, an old VOX amp barely containing the buzz and chop of Paddy’s guitar. The floor tom is pounded mercilessly and you can almost imagine the meter needles redlining.
‘We ain’t got the answers, we’re the Sturmey Archers and ain’t that enough?’ he sings. I’d argue that the nine songs that follow prove the Sturmey Archers are more than enough.
Next up is Espresso Black, recalling teenage posturing in coffee bars, with On the Road in one hand and a Thelonious Monk album in the other. Someone Need a Hug? showcases the driving rhythm section of Keith Pugh (bass) and drummer and producer Mike Vaughan. It’s a metronomic floor-filler with a nicely judged theremin solo. The song is the first of several songs on the record that deal both compassionately and humorously with the thoughts of middle-aged men in crisis. His Famous Moustache is a live favourite because it poses the question: whose famous moustache? Paddy saw a celebrity one day and muses on it in the song but refuses to say who it was. Audience members are invited to guess.
Fat Paul Weller is a portrait of a man at odds with a world that hasn’t made sense to him since Eton Rifles was in the Top Ten. A sympathetic bossa nova with nice backing harmonies that takes us smoothly to the end of side one. It’s worth mentioning here that the whole album fits together beautifully. Clearly designed as a vinyl project the changes in pace and mood will keep you entertained throughout.
Putting the needle down on side two you will be startled by All She Wants To Do Is Crochet, a pacey paean to a partner who loves crochet more than anything. It’s great fun, with quiet breakdowns and a brash chorus. The Sturmeys even find time to add some handclaps before crossing the finish line at a brisk two minutes thirty. I wonder if there’s ever been a garage-rock song that mentions crocheted tea cosies before? Get a Purpose lists growing a beard, buying DJ decks, barbecuing and weightlifting as ways to “fill the emptiness.” The Sturmeys tackle themes of introspection playfully. I’m Going Back In Time To Punch My Stupid Face is another great dance tune. It reimagines ‘Non, je ne regrette rien’ with wistful irony. Betsy is an exuberant celebration of Dave, an insurance man obsessed with a campervan and the lifestyle it promises. Keyboard player Lee Huxtable brings an awesome garage-surf vibe, with a howling Hammond undertow.
During their nearly twenty-year history the Sturmey Archers have made an artform of self-deprecation and the album ends with the modest title track We Failed. This melancholy ballad begins with Paddy singing and strumming alone before bass, piano and then drums gradually join in. At the end he sings, “gloriously we failed.” It’s a poignant moment, landing somewhere between resignation and defiant pride. A garage-rock take on My Way.
I think they could have called this record We Succeeded or We Triumphed, but that wouldn’t be very Sturmey would it? Get yourself a copy from bandcamp and celebrate their glorious failure.
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All words Pete Harvey
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