Thursday, May 31, 2012

Cornershop's "Urban Turban"



The other day, I was hunting for Cornershop’s “Brimful Of Asha” when I stumbled upon the pleasant surprise of their new album “Urban Turban”.  There’s the beauty of Spotify right there- the ability to make a serendipitous discovery that otherwise would’ve been hidden far from your grasp.  

The album opens with “What Did The Hippie Have In His Bag?”, the title’s whimsy matched by the seemingly random lyrics sung with the background vocals of a group of young children. Like “Brimful of Asha”, the song is driven by a basic, chunky guitar riff and is just as charming.  “Who’s Gonna Lite It Up?" dirties up the guitar a bit and adds some spice via a sultry Middle Eastern drumbeat that takes the basic glam-rock vibe and spins it closer to hypnotic trance.  “Beacon Radio 303” is another fantastic amalgamation of sounds: funk bass, fat 303 synth sound and Rajwant’s chanting vocals (in Hindi?). Towards the end of “Urban Turban” is the old-school disco vibe of “Dedicated” which could've made 'em get down in the old Paradise Garage/West End Records days.

“Urban Turban” does a splendid job of uniting a range of disparate sources and will pull you gently towards the dance floor and leave you blissfully stranded.