In
1980, a fresh-faced Welsh three-piece named ‘Young Marble Giants’ released
their debut LP, ‘Colossal Youth’. It was to be their only full-length album, a
minimalistic and Spartan thing that defied the noise and the vitriol of the
emerging post-punk movement. It has earned since its release three reissues,
endorsements from the influential Kurt Cobain and indie legends ‘Belle and
Sebastian’ and ‘Galaxie 500’. Yet somehow it remains obscure even to music obsessives,
a bona fide cult classic whose unassuming nature has perhaps ensured that it
stays under the radar. Perhaps it was a little unassuming for its own good;
eschewing organic drums for a drum machine and paring post-punk back to its
very essence was perhaps not a prudent move in an underground music economy
where bands such as ‘Wire’, ‘Talking Heads’ and ‘The Clash’ held thrall. The
artistic merits of the album, however, are indisputable- it is a very rare
album that sounds like little else released before or since, and an even rarer one
that sounds quite as wonderful as this does.
If there is one adjective that springs to mind
immediately when listening to Colossal Youth, it is endearing: lead singer
Alison Stattons unpolished lilt, the delightfully off-kilter drum machine, the
prominent bass, the explorations of negative space and quiet guitar melodies;
all these conflated ensure charm. The drum machine especially ensures an
introspective and low-key atmosphere; would-be garage rock anthems ‘Include me
out’ and ‘Brand New Life’ are tempered and pared down into punk conceptions at
their most minimal. Elsewhere, the rollicking opener ‘Searching for Mister
Right’ casts a spell from the get-go, all propulsive rhythm and ethereal
vocals. ‘Salad Days’ is a gorgeous wistful ballad, conjuring images of sunshine
and laughter long since passed. Singling out specific tracks seems redundant
however; this is an album that begs to be listened to as a whole, enthralling
and addictive as it is. That said, the sparse arrangement of the album does
begin to grate after a while. Moreover, though it may seem unusual to cite the
albums consistency as a flaw, the lack of stand-out tracks and the similarity
of the pervading atmosphere of each song does mean that the album can become
stale after repeated listens.
I alluded earlier that ‘Colossal Youth’ is a post-punk album, but that is not
strictly true. Though it gets classified as such, pigeon-holing the album into
that genre does a disservice to the originality at work here. It resemblance to
post-punk is tenuous, and I believe it is only called such because at the
time there would have been nothing else to call it. It bears more in common
with the indie genre of today. Glimmers of it are found in the XX’s
self-titled, in the gentle sonic explorations of Beach House, but no-one has
made an album quite like this. It stands alone, humbly, entreating the listener
not with noise or with gimmickry but with earnestness and a quaint,
unsentimental beauty. I can only recommend you let it coax you in. Lose
yourself in the beguile and sprawl; this one is a hidden treasure worth
searching for.