Nothing should be surprising about a band who have always used the power of surprise as almost an extra instrument. Coming out of the Windmill pub scene alongside Squid and Black Midi, they were probably the hardest to classify of all these unclassifiable bands. What was it? Prog-folk-classical-punk-jazz? Prolk-clunkzz?
You had the sense in previous albums, including their Mercury nominated debut For The First Time, that part of the fun of it was the surprising directions they discovered within their own songs, within their own classically trained capacities as musicians. It made for captivating listening. And this has not not changed, despite the departure of singer and guitarist Isaac Wood for mental health reasons.
