david k frampton

When I first encountered Custom Blue I was in total awe. They were signed to Island, were tipped for awards and counted Max Tundra as one of their members in an early incarnation. What was not to love? When I first heard ‘Structures’ from their 1st album I was gobsmacked at it’s eerie yet symphonic beauty. Here was a band able to be experimental, emotive and totally in love with the song form. But it was the 1st  EP, not the 1st album that really delved into their experimental liquid flow marrying sensitive and aware melodies to vast and brimming soundscapes. By comparison the album, for all it’s rustic and evocative beauty never quite reached me in the same way as E.P. One. The frankly genius single ‘When It Burns’ (the sort of song The Verve might have made if they were listening to Autechre and not Oasis,) pre-empted another sea change, but this time, for All Will Be Well the music was deeply wound tight into a consistent and convincing sound field. A series of mini-epiphanies on universal and complex themes all wrapped up in a sonic blanket that wasn’t afraid to whisper or roar..part Spiritualized/ part Neil but all Custom Blue. The  new EP, simply titled EP 3 is a bit of everything, and kind of like nothing at all. There is a maturity to it and a sombre-ness to it. The centre piece a 11min epic sound collage that feels simultaneously abstracted and emotive. Flanked by 3 songs of unquestionable depths, the songs are very vibe heavy, they glide, in and out of view, shifting emphasis, endlessly tugging and pulling at the heart, effortlessly vital. With this essential recording I think they have arrived. This music simply must be heard. It’s too good. Some bands just make you feel great-ful that you exist. Count Custom Blue as one of them.