Pugwash

Gary Glauber
Reviews:
November/December,
2005

Pugwash
Jollity

(1969 Records)

U.K. Release Date: September 23, 2005
U.S. Release Date: Available as import

www.pugwashtheband.com
www.1969records.com

Thomas Walsh, the creative singer/songwriter force behind Pugwash, remains one of those tremendously talented people who thus far has (quite unjustly) escaped public notice. Still, with the release of Jollity, his third studio album, there is hope this might change.

Walsh has a reputation as a musician's musician, writing rich melodic songs of love and loss that tend to be packed full with effective pop hooks amid layers of meticulously executed musical nuance. Walsh's own Beatlemania often rises to the fore, as does his Jeff Lynne/RoyWood/The Move/Electric Light Orchestra vibe, though there's plenty Beach Boys/High Llamas influence as well. Walsh also claims to be moved by such disparate musical entities as the Bee Gees, The Kinks and XTC.

The admiration extends both ways, however, with Pugwash garnering praise from the likes of such heralded icons as Brian Wilson and XTC's Andy Partridge (who co-wrote one of the new songs). Pugwash specializes in songs designed for residual pleasure - the kinds of things that go around your head long after the music has stopped playing.

Yet these superb compositions haven't translated into commercial success, and even though the songs of Jollity continue the string of excellence, it's likely Pugwash shall make do with the comfortable cult status it has achieved in Walsh's native Dublin, America, and Australia (where Pugwash songs get radio play).

In a thankless, mercurial industry driven by formulas based on others' successes, Pugwash is a throwback to simpler times when it was mostly the music that mattered. So Walsh soldiers on, not changing his style to someone else's idea of musical "flavor-of-the-month." He remains driven by a desire for excellence, and always has been, from 1999's debut Almond Teaon through 2002's Almanac. Now, Jollity delivers more of the same, with increased depth and maturity -- eleven home-made songs that arrive fully realized, a collection of small melodic masterpieces.

Primarily this is a collection of symphonic pop ballads, those looking to rock out can move on. Walsh has surrounded himself with a core of fine musicians, Keith Farrell on bass, Duncan Maitland on various keyboards, a variety of drummers (Graham Hopkins, Aidan O'Grady, John Boyle) and two very special guests in Dave Gregory and Eric Matthews.

Jollity is the musical equivalent of thoughtful repose, a quiet afternoon of careful contemplation couched in warm, well-arranged surroundings. Partially recorded at Abbey Road Studios, there's a suitable feeling of musical reverence in these songs - every track rewards those who listen closely with headphones.

The album opens with a true bit of jollity, the amiable and bouncy single, "It's Nice To Be Nice." The Brian Wilson influence comes through loud and clear, a bubbly Beach Boys bassline percolating beneath simple lyrics that state the obvious: "It's nice to be nice, as my mama once said / It's good to be good and it's fun to be fun." While it's catchy and fun, the real album begins with the next track.

Thomas Walsh has a knack for wonderfully melodic hook lines that fit their way between steady chord progressions. It's Walsh at his best - as he holds off with the hook, forcing the listener to hear it even when it's not there. Two of the songs here follow in that winning formula are "Black Dog" and "Even I." "Black Dog" (no relation to the Zeppelin song) builds slowly into something grand, an emotional homage and plea for a life of painless solitude. Walsh's smooth tenor conveys that plea well, a man in a dark cave seeking not to be bothered. Voicing the musical hook (and doing his best Chet Baker stint) is the talented Eric Matthews (Cardinal, solo), whose trumpeting presence here adds so much. Also present here with a lead is one-time XTC member Dave Gregory.

Many contend XTC lost depth and richness after Gregory's departure. His guitar, keyboards and arrangements added much to the XTC sound - but since he never shared the songwriting spotlight with Moulding and Partridge, his contributions were downplayed some. In truth, Gregory excels at nuances, finding just the right sounds to fill the void, be it strings or keys. His string arrangements on *Sklylarking* remain a testament to his talents.

Those talents are very much on display throughout *Jollity*, particularly in the beautifully lush string arrangements found on "A Rose In A Garden of Weeds." This song of patient waiting tells of love questioned and held off, yet ultimately verified through the tacit virtues of laughter. Walsh's talents extend beyond creating Beatlesque symphonic ballads to crafting lyrics that reflect a poet's succinct expression: "Why won't you let me in? / Feel life through my soul / And then you laugh and t - Biggest POP website on the net.....

A PUGOGRAPHY

"PUGWASH Jollity **** (4/5 stars) All is not lost as long as there is a band
like Pugwash around. Here is a group of gifted musicians led by a songwriter of
great panache and intelligence in Thomas Walsh. THE IRISH INDEPENDENT
26/08/2005"

A
Jollity has already received a 4 out 5 star review in the Irish Independent who
also recently singled out Pugwash as being a cut above most bands on the
current Irish scene.The band were invited by Ryan Tubridy for a live session on
his RTE Radio 1 morning show at the end of August 2005, and their 3 songs
received a great response. Tubridy called them ??the band of the
summer?? and has given great support. More television and radio appearances
are scheduled this coming Autumn


The Definition
A champion of the cause for melodic, enigmatic rock, Pugwash is the vehicle for
the exquisite song writing of Dubliner Thomas Walsh. More than just another
band, Pugwash have delivered two distinguished pop masterworks in the form of
albums, Almond Tea and Almanac.

In Thomas Walsh, Pugwash has a considerably gifted songwriter and performer, who
has given life to his songs together with his core of musical partners Keith
Farrell, Aidan O'Grady, Duncan Maitland and Shaun McGee. Other noted musicians
who have graced Pugwash recordings in the past and present include: Jason
Falkner (ex-Jellyfish member and collaborator of Air, Beck, Paul McCartney and
Aimee Mann), The Section Quartet (LA based rock 'n' roll string quartet to the
likes of James Blunt, Kanye West, Grant Lee Phillips, Wilco and Jon Brion),
Dave Gregory (XTC / Dukes Of Stratosphere guitarist, pianist and arranger),
Eric Matthews (former Cardinal US pop-maestro), Graham Hopkins (Halite and
ex-Therapy?), John Boyle (the Frames) and many more who are no less significant
or appreciated.

Critical adoration in their homeland has never been a problem, but it was
Australia who first caught the pug-bug in a big way when Triple J gave heavy
airplay to Monorail and Keep Moving On. This was in the wake of the Karmic Hit
label's lovingly produced compilation Earworm. An amalgam of their finest songs
to date, Earworm has been gathering a healthy web-based cult status in the U.S.
and Australia.

The Origins
Although Pugwash existed in the mind of Thomas Walsh back as far as the early
90's, much of his time in the 1990s was spent as a guitarist on records and
tours with Andy White and infamous Californian producer and performer Kim
Fowley. Eventually the time came for him to step forward from the shadows and
the band emerged just before the turn of the last century with the finely
crafted debut Almond Tea (1999). Ireland's music bible Hot Press rated it as
one of their 'Top 30 Albums of the Millennium' a mere four weeks after its
release (#23 to be precise), holding their own with the U2s, Bowies and Dylans
of this world.

With Almond Tea featuring destined-classics like The Finer Things In Life and
Darkness Makes Us Blind, it wasn't hard to see and hear why. To get behind it,
they toured up and down the forty corners of Ireland, both as headliners and as
guests of Jason Falkner, Television, Grant Lee Phillips (ex Grant Lee Buffalo),
Glen Tilbrook (ex-Squeeze), and Cotton Mather among others.

The year 2002 saw their triumphant return came in the form of an even more
finely crafted collection of songs called Almanac. This record that proved
Pugwash were musical force to be reckoned with and has dwelt long and lovingly
in the ear-space many. Partly influenced by the contributions of musical
soul-mate Jason Falkner, who took time out from his collaboration with French
electronic mood maestros Air, the reviews for Almanac were once again
unanimously glowing. Almanac's impact was acknowledged again recently in a BBC
radio interview when XTC front-man Andy Partridge picked Apples by Pugwash as
the most exciting song he's heard this year. The general response was a further
step in the right direction.

The Present and Future
On the surface, you could be forgiven for thinking that Pugwash dropped off the
face of the planet in 2004, but this couldn't be further from reality. It was a
year spent mostly away from the live arena, locked up in studios and
negotiation rooms. Wheels were in motion to increase their profile in the
U.S.A. and in the UK and Australia. A Stateside representation agreement was
struck with New York-based Joe D'Amrosio Management, whose roster also includes
Tony Visconti (legendary producer of David Bowie, The Move and Marc Bolan) and
Toby Scott (studio engineer to Bruce Springsteen).

Happily 2005 has been good to Pugwash on a number of levels. Unprecedented
amounts of nationwide daytime airplay on 2FM embraced the radio-single, It's
Nice To Be Nice. This culminated recently with a guest appearance. The ripple
effect even made an impact across the Atlantic in California, resulting in
Pugwash's a personal invitation to meet the - reviews