Released 18th May 2009 - Rough Trade
It's been almost three years since Jarvis released his first solo effort, The Jarvis Cocker Record, to muted acclaim. His second album, Further Complications, sees the former Pulp front man seek out a more guitar-based sound with the aid of Steve Albini, the master of no-frills production.
The title track and album opener is Bowie-esque. The teenage Cocker posing with a hairbrush to 'Diamond Dogs' finally making it on record. There's plenty of him elsewhere too, the drawn out sax-heavy intro to 'Homewrecker' being a prime example.
'Angela', the second track and lead single, draws comparison with fellow bespectacled bard Elvis Costello with it's staccato guitar and equally uncomfortable vocals. 'Pilchard' on the other hand is mostly instrumental, save for the occasional interjection of a trademark Jarvis "Oh".
But the rawness of the record has by no means diluted any of Jarvo's scything wit. 'I Never Said I was Was Deep' and 'Leftovers' give indication that all was not well in the Cocker heart, possibly an echo of the recent collapse of his marriage. 'Hold Still 'further enhances this. Describing a love lost, he sings the line "You're cosmic dust, but you're everything to me." with such honest fragility that for a moment, you forget you're listening to a Yorkshireman.
'F*ckingsong' and 'Caucasian Blues' change the dynamic and help clear the lump from the throat, the former being the clearest evidence of Albini's fingerprint, whilst the latter stands as the weakest track on the album. Possibly a leftover from his ill-fated 'Relaxed Muscle' experiment in 2003.
'Slush' is possibly the most Pulp-like track of the whole album. The Scott Walker fascination is still prevalent with breezing orchestrations to boot.
The album's final song 'You're In My Eyes (Discosong)', sounds strangely out of place. The intro sounds remarkably like Sly Stone and the whispered spoken intro could be a Sheffield Barry White, the hamster of love, anyone? Some people can do soul, Jarvis Branson Cocker isn't one of them and thankfully he just about gets away with it.
Overall, it's clear that his personal life had a resounding effect on the subject matter of the record and, despite the attempts to beef up musically, it's all a little to strange hearing Jarvis write in the first person. You get the feeling that this was something he needed to get out of his system.
(7.5/10)
Return to form for our Jarvis? Does he have the greatest song-titles of all time?
Posted In Album Reviews, May 25 2009.
Words - Tony