Melancholia by Ashley Reaks

REVIEWS

PENNY BLACK
Ashley Reaks flaunts the kind of maddening genius usually reserved for Dutch impressionists who puncture their ears. Okay, so Reaks is from England, but he is still a mad Renaissance man. Besides singing, playing guitar and composing, he is a visual artist who paints vividly.Reaks experiments successfully with a myriad of genres layering reggae, African drumming, Indian vocalizations, electronica, jazz and spoken word, Jah Wobble bass and even scat-singing to his wizardly elixir.

SANDMAN
'Melancholia' sounds like PiL, The Sisters Of Mercy and Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry all jamming together, with Reaks’ evocative vocals weaving in and out of the  lush synth textures and tribal rhythms. Melancholia' retains a coherence, a consistency and a pop sensibility often lost when artists try to be ‘experimental’. Although Reaks’ music IS experimental in the sense that it blends seemingly disparate genres it does so seamlessly and skilfully. Ashley Reaks proves that clever and carefully constructed music can still be visceral, direct and beautiful.

Tracklist

1.	Sucker For Punishment	4:38

2.	The Swamp People	3:15

3.	Perpetual Motion	2:42

4.	She Burns	5:35

5.	I've Got Everything (That Nobody Wants)	1:57

6.	Melancholia	2:50

7.	White Man Sings The Blues	4:42

8.	Puppy Fat	2:04

9.	His Floating Bones	3:53

10.	Prayer For The Living Dead	3:33

Credits

released March 3, 2008

Ashley Reaks - Vocals, Guitars, Bass, Keyboards
Maria Jardardottir - Vocals
Ian Peak - Saxophones

Recorded and Produced by Mark Woolnough and Ashley Reaks except 'Sucker For Punishment' by Dave McCracken
Artwork by Ashley Reaks

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