Laika - Good Looking Blues

Label: Too Pure
Catologue Number: PURE89CD
Format: CD
Date: 2000
Style: Post Rock / Electronica
Rating: 8/10
Reviewer: Sidney James


Naming your band after the first dog in space, is a pretty cool thing to do in my book. However the name would have gone to waste if Laika were not also a coolly unique band. Formed out of the split up of Shoegazer sampleheads Moonshine. Laika consist of core members Margaret Fielder and Guy Fixsen as well as a PJ Harvey drummer Rob Ellis and multi instrumentalist, Lou Ciccotelli (God and Ice). Anyway who has seen PJ Harvey live recently will probably be familiar with Laika as they formed PJ's backing band. However on their own Laika are on of the leading lights of the UK post rock scene and Good Looking Blues is their third album release.

If I was to a say that Laika's music was a crossover of funky beats and jazzy notions topped off with smooth female vocals, I can see you all immediately thinking 'Trip Hop, Portishead, Morcheeba, blah de blah' or even worse thinking that they were some kind of Acid Jazz band when I mention the words jazz/ funk fusion. Yes there may be some kind of connection to the likes of Portishead, but the jazz funk elements are closer to the pioneering works of Herbie Hancock and Miles Davis rather than Weather Report or the Brand New Heavies. Neither are Laika anything like Madonna (circa Ray of Light) as suggested by the press release that came with the Uneasy single. Nope, if anything Laika are closer to early 80's avant funksters like 23 Skidoo and A Certain Ratio and the break beat sample psychedelicists Meat Beat Manifesto and MC 900ft Jesus.

Still confused. Well join in me in a journey deep into the grooves of one head trip of an album. Good looking blues begins with the acidic funk journey of ‘Black Cat Blue‘. The song rolls along on cascading drums and percussion as jazz sax and turntable scratches create a dense mesh of mind altering shapes and sounds. The lyrics on the surface seem to be dealing with the normal relationship problems, but also suggest at black magic being involved in bringing the errant lover back into the fold. The song sets the agenda nicely for the rest of the album.

‘Black cat Blue’ is followed by the more urgent ‘Moccasin’ which is lead by fast paced jazzy drum breaks and a Doorsian keyboard motif. A funk bass line is then slipped smoothly into the song propelling it further forwards. Margaret’s vocals are smooth and delightful as a bucket of melted chocolate, kindly reminding you “Don’t get caught in the grass”. The song as features some excellent turntable tricks which turn a looped voice into a strange mantra. Where Laika succeed is that though the pick the pace up they don’t become overbearing and muddled.

Things are slowed down again with the slightly more usual ‘T street’. The song rides on trip hop beats and what sounds like a wah-wah pedalled bass. Once more subtle keyboards float on top of the causal undercarriage. Margaret’s vocals are even more alluring calling you to relax and drift into the song. Just like the sirens you want to me dragged in, fully aware on the sweet oblivion that awaits you. ‘T street’ is probably the nearest than Laika get to your common and garden trip hop on this album.

Album title track time again. ‘Good looking Blues’ sees Laika putting their foot gently on the accelerator again. This time we have a complex jazz feel to the song but avoiding collapsing into free form. Twisting and turning drums are greeted by trumpets that sound like they belong on some long lost Miles Davis album, whilst a melodic flute floats over the top. It though the song is rife with complex rhythmic changes in never lapses into the realms of the unlistenable. Laika prove that you can experiment without turning the listener off.

Next up is the sublime ‘Widow’s weed’. Again with have the tripping cascading beats and the 60’s psychedelic keyboard sounds, but this time we have some kind of Voodoo jazz vibe going. The jazz horns are this time higher in the mix and to seem to lead the reason of the instrumentation on a merry but controlled dance. “Widow’s weed’ proves that although the root influences may be the same, Laika are miles away from the league of coffee table trip hoppers out there.

‘Glory Cloud’ follows and sees Laika keeping up the standards of funky psychedelic head music. The track has a gorgeous deep bass line that mingles with shimmering beats and electronic sounds like seemed to have escaped from a 1960’s sci-fi film. Margaret’s vocals again purr beautiful and I think I’m falling in love with them. There goes all my objective criticisms out of the window.

Falling the short but so gorgeous ‘Glory cloud’ is ‘Go fish’ which remains me of a more funky version of PJ Harvey’s ‘Down by the water’. Laika again provide a superbly rich blend of sounds with out sounding bland or lazy in their approach.

Here comes ’Bad times’ which has to be my favourite track on the album, all twitching funk, rolling beats, turntable skids and humorous lyrics about an e-mail virus. This virus will not only destroy your computer but also ruin your life; “giving you nightmares about circus midgets…kicking your dog…chasing kids with a snow blower… and also is an interesting shade of mauve”. It’s a great track that proves that post rock does not have to all about po faced misberalism.

The album ends with the heavier funk of ‘Knowing to little’. Again we have rolling drums and a slap bass sound this time joined by a nagging but smooth jazz guitars. The lyrics suggest at sexual matters, or maybe that’s just by libido getting carried away with Margaret’s foxy voice. The track makes me want to live out my 70’ pimp fantasies for some reason.

I really can’t heap enough praise on Good Looking Blues, is one of those unique albums that really gets under your skin. It also seems to fit the summery weather we’ve been having recently and conjures up visions of hot nights in a sprawling metropolis in my mind. My advice (again) is to go and buy Good Looking blues right now, or if your strapped for cash at least get the ’Bad times’ single. It’s just a shame that more people haven’t heard of Laika. I also know it’s not going to be up everyone’s street, but what do you expect in a world were hype and image and more important than the music.