Mark Pontin Group
Album: Textures
Label: Moochee
Tracks: 12
Website: http://www.markpontingroup.com

"Textures" is the second album from Swansea-based blues/rock band "Mark Pontin Group". When I first saw the name I thought they might as well have been a collection of solicitors, as it doesn't exactly conjure up images of funk rocking blues players. Anyway enough complaining about the band name! Mark Pontin Group are a four-piece with an obvious pool of musical talent to draw on. Aside from Pontin's sleazy guitar fuzz and versatile voice, there are walking baselines, splashy beats and groovy keystrokes abound.

This summer I visited Memphis, TN in the United States - the home of the blues. They've even got a BB King's blues cafe where you can eat, drink and be blue if you fancy! In a place such as BB's you'll see acts from around 10am until some ungodly hour, 99% of which will be blues-based. Needless to say there are a lot of middle-of-the-road blues/rock acts out there playing every day. The music is pleasant but not so gripping that it wrenches you from your quadruple-sized burger. Mark Pontin Group's second album, "Textures" brings this to mind for me, and I think it's quite a drawback to the album.

You see for me blues is all about the struggle between humankind and life - the hardships of the working classes and the ways in which they overcome that. Plus sometimes there's a little bit about smokestack lightning (whatever that may be) and a faithless female. On the rock side of the blues/rock coin, I would say that rock music is all about good times but also a fair helping of sticking it to the man. By these definitions of blues and rock, I would say that Textures falls a little short for roughly half of it's duration. The second half of the album just doesn't quite hook me as the first did - and that's a great shame because the first portion of the album is electric!

Personal highlights for me would be the opening track "Outside Inside" which feels very much like a Black Sabbath track, maybe because of the thick and dirty-sounding electric guitar coupled with Pontin's slightly Ozzy-esque wail. If you're not a fan of Mr Osbourne then fear not, as "Rising Up Before Dawn" offers a much more subtle vocal arrangement to suit the slower and smoother vibe of the song. I really love "Delirious" as well. Think of a Tom Morello riff and a Philip Sayce riff somehow having a baby. That's how you end up with the guitar part for "Delirious".

"Textures" really does contain some fantastic musicianship from all members of the band,. Yet whilst there are some standout tracks that I love for their in-your-face-ness, a large section of this album didn't tickle my excitement glands in the right way. The main reason being that they didn't invoke those core values of rock and blues which I have etched into my mind.

Lloyd Brown
www.squarerootspromotions.co.uk