Milk Maid are a refreshing change in the music that comes out of Manchester. Their perfect pop songs hidden under layers of fuzz ensure that they don't get tarred with the lad rock brush.
Their sophmore album 'Mostly No' was recorded on a tape machine in singer Martin Cohen's home with all his pals chipping in to help and it's reflected in the music. Without the dependancy on computers the album sounds straight out of the 90s and has a chilled out feel to it. Tracks like 'Stir So Slow', with it's lazy guitar riff, would fit in perfectly on a Pavement album. It's quite obvious that Stephen Malkmus and his slacker vibes are a big influence on the band, they're even supporting The Jicks next month!, but that doesn't mean that Milk Maid forget where they're actually from or rely on their influences too much. The constast contrast between hazy, summery guitars and the miserable lyrics create a summer album that doesn't leave behind it's gloomy, Mancunian roots. This is reflected perfectly in 'Summertime' which, despite it's name, is about waiting until it's sunny to kill yourself.
The album starts off promising with singalong 'Dopamine' and Wavves-esque 'Your Neck Around Mine' but tails off towards the end when the songs almost run into one long, fuzzy, acoustic guitar ridden track. In saying that, clocking in at just over 30 minutes, 'Mostly No' is a short and sweet summer album to stick on whilst chilling in the sun. If we ever get any that is...
6.5
Eden Young
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