Ambulance Ltd
It’s private health care gone mad
Ambulance Ltd
It's always frustrating when a band relies so heavily on the music that influenced them that they are unable to avoid sounding like a budget tribute band. Fortunately, while The Kinks, Elliot Smith and a whole host of Britpopera bands loom large on this debut album, Ambulance Ltd have managed to produce something with a great deal of imagination. At a time when musicians seem to be looking nowhere but backwards, they have forged a sound that is familiar without being hackneyed.
The smooth, effortless drawl of Marcus Congleton's vocals complement some tidy, chord progressions, and while the cheery strumming of ‘Heavy Lifting' takes you back to mid-90s Camden, the bassdriven groove of ‘Sugar Pill' could have come straight out of Bristol. That's the triumph of this album: a distinctive sound, despite the fairly broad variation in styles. Some songs may tend dangerously towards blandness, particularly ‘Young Urban', which belongs on an episode of Dawson's Creek.
However, this is a well-constructed, innovative first offering that should turn a few heads in the not-too-distant future.
24th Feb 2005