The Coral are the latest (last?) in a long line of Liverpool bands with that distinctive Merseybeat sound. Led by clean jangling guitars with simple bass, backbeat drums and classic vocal harmonies they follow there a long list of ascendents: The Beatles, The Searchers, Gerry & The Pacemakers, through to The La's, Shack and up to The Zutons. All have that classic Mersey sound that is rooted in a hybrid of skiffle, rhythm and blues and rock n roll.
As you might have guess from the album's title everything about ROOTS & ECHOES harks back to the genre's glory days of the early '60: The monotone album shot, the typography and of course the songs.
At the heart of The Coral is great classic British songwriting, that's not to say these are swaggering Britpop anthems. These are sweet and melodic beat-songs, very similar to The La's first and only album. The sound is resolutely old fashioned. On tracks like 'Remember Me' and 'She's Got a Reason' if you were to strip out singer James Skelly's scouse vocal you could be listening to the early Shadows.
Skelly's song-writing has matured and and the album is altogether slower-paced than it's predecessors with the exception two heavier tunes, 'In The Rain' and 'She's Got a Reason'. The latter builds into a vaguely psychy-rock out with hammond organ and fuzzed guitar solos. Even here though, the timeless melody is everything.
ROOTS & ECHOES is a classic '60s album, released 40 years too late.
'PUT THE SUN BACK'
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FqlKZDZpmkI
'NOT SO LONELY'
'COBWEBS'
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