| Sounds Like |
REVIEW: Gigantic Inflation of the Ego
If you believe the best rock comes from the UK but you don't know Spiv—a four-piece, Anglo-American, Woodstock-based band known for its complex, trippy tunes—this CD's for you. However, if you're in the know on Spiv, take heed—this CD's danceable, drivable, dreamable.
Spiv (English slang for a man who lives by his wits) updates '80s Brit rock with energetic, multilayered songs. Listen for traces of Bowie, Gang of Four, Joy Division, Psychedelic Furs, Pink Floyd, even Gong. Spiv certainly maintains an air of mystery—the CD merely lists 10 tracks and its appearances are underground. Nonetheless, Spiv's wide following appreciates its tightly woven threads of two guitars—one spacey, psychedelic; the other relentless, urgent—and lyrics that are detached, edgy, and pointed.
In Spiv's debut CD, leader Sham Morris and second vocalist John Gullo deliver wry observations on women ("Hillary's Psychosis," "Poor Little Baby," "Simone") and society ("Old Soho," "Bottom Feeders") in taut vocals. In the haunting "Don't Cover Your Eyes," the guitars play like trees with endless branches, ominous background whispers sprouting like leaves. It's unclear whether the song's refrain, "Cover your heads, cover your souls, but don't cover your eyes," refers to world events, personal relationships or both, but in a post-9/11 world, that's as it should be.
—Susan Piperato, Chronogram magazine
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