The Talon-ted MECHANICAL OWL

‘Row Your Boat’

Mechanical Owl – Snowdonia (The Beard Collector)

Mechanical Owl‘s self-released EP, Snowdonia, has, unbeknownst to me, been out for some time. It has garnered acclaim from household names such as Adam Walton, as well as being recorded as a BBC session with Bethan Elfyn.

However, the innovative songwriting and inspired instrumentation on display here — along with a consummately-professional recording — leave one (and I know I’m a sucker for hyperbole, but I really mean this) amazed that many more people haven’t taken notice of this band.

Guitarist and lead vocalist Mike Payne says the band are currently recording new material and, on the evidence of Snowdonia, the results will be hugely anticipated — on this ingenuous blog, at least.

Clearly drawing influence from Radiohead, Grizzly Bear and, perhaps unintentionally, Chicago ensemble Anathallo, Snowdonia oozes atmospheric integrity. Right from the upbeat Brittle II, which sounds like a humbler, more mature Death Cab for Cutie, to the synth-pop electronica of Gravel Grain, the EP ducks and weaves any attempt to pin it down to one genre. Unlike so many who attempt such eclecticity (most ending up a muddled mess), Mechanical Owl make it work. This is down to a perfect grasp of subtle production, radical yet restrained instrumentation, and above all great songs.

One of the highlight moments, the song Snowdonia itself, uses gritty background creaks and whirrs over echoed ukulele to create a timbre that’s as catchy as it is unique. On Row Your Boat, a similarly-stunning set of overlayed channels culminates in the group chanting a mantra of (what sounds like) “We can’t row away” over and over, until even the most phelgmatic of listeners would surely be convinced of the group’s sonic probity.

Judging by this offering, the next record from Mechanical Owl should get you salivating more than a victim of a severe head injury.

Mechanical Owl play Buffalo, Cardiff, with Copy Haho and others on December 10.