Album Review: About Group - Start And Complete

The headline name in About Group may be Hot Chip’s Alexis Taylor but don’t be fooled into thinking this is just his little side project. Taylor's fellow About Groupers are John Coxon – of Spiritualized fame, Pat Thomas – who has played with the likes of Derek Bailey, and legendary drummer of This Heat, Charles Hayward. If nothing else, such a stellar cast of creative and experimental talents makes this, their second album offering, more than a bit intriguing.

About Group are spontaneous. They had never played together as a group before they made their entire first album in one day back in 2009. A string of similarly off-the-cuff live performances followed before they came together once more for Start and Complete, again recorded in a single day, this time at Abbey Road. A far cry from the precise Hot Chip philosophy that has created such successful dance floor geekery, About Group aim to capture the first things that come into their heads first and they do a pretty good job of it too.

From the very opening of ‘Married To The Sea (a)’ Start and Complete has a different feel to the band's similarly improvised debut. A tranquil opening with slowly plucked guitars, it sets the first proper track, ‘Don’t Worry’, up perfectly where Alexis Taylor’s familiar voice glides smoothly over 60s psychedelica. It is not as immediately likable as Hot Chip but then, it’s not supposed to be. Instead, the organ and piano in the background complement each other perfectly.

Improvisation is at the heart of everything About Group do and this shows through quite often. There are swift, mid-song changes in pace and style; none more so than ‘Lay Me Down’, which heads from standard upbeat indie fare to squealing electronics and contemplative vocals in one swoop. This ability to change on demand keeps the album feeling fresh and interesting without ever feeling like it has been stuck together with little thought.

‘You’re No Good’ is an 11 minute epic taking the likes of Billy Preston through a more chilled out Crosby, Stills and Nash fell and onto the 21st century. The group manage to keep the authentic 60s feel to the tune that was championed as one of the first remixes when it was released by Terry Riley in 1967 but they put their own spin on it too. Like some other sections of the album, parts of the song can pass you by but at no point does it feel directionless. Instead, each track feels new, interesting and different. Not bad for a day’s work, really.