Paul Hayworth 2017
Cosmic yet mundane sounds from England’s secret merchant of psych.
There might be a plethora of releases available via Paul Hayworth’s Bandcamp page, but you’ll be forgiven for having never heard of him – just because for the last five years the British artist’s been operating on the fringe of underground, and is finally beaming out of it now. That’s why, if one has to get their message through, “The Signal” would be a perfect start, steady beat ushering in shards of spaced-out guitar that will get dirty along the way, as Hayworth’s deadpan delivery takes it all down to earth to shatter the piece’s psychedelic swirl. And that’s how he emerges as a rhythm-and-blues avatar on “Scorpio’s Moon” which might be the album’s most romantic moment – this side of the dancefloor-bound “Together Forever”: a story of a transgender who fell in love with themselves.
In comparison, the six-minute “Seashell” may seem shallow in its twangy ebb and flow, yet there’s something riveting about the song, especially when the tune is undercut with a serrated riff that’s also buried deep in the groove of “Chillwave” to puncture the trance-inducing bass. But while “Tecumberlam” is possessed with heavy gloom, and “Smokey On The Highway” revs up in a hard rock fashion, “Ghosts On The Bridge” sounds transparently spectral, arguably capturing the very essence of “Love ‘n Suicide” and exposing Paul Hayworth’s music for all to see and marvel at. A worthy record, this one.
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