Echo Scale: ★★★★✮ (4.7)
Can Art Rock Truly Balance Avant-Garde & Accessibility?
Art Rock is a hard line to toe. Too avant-garde and you risk making a meaningless din which alienates your listeners. Too simplistic and is it really artsy enough? I am pleased to say that Le Bone stand upon the “summit” of balancing the two.
Welcome to The Bone Yard, home of Le Bone, Wolverhampton’s “pinkest Art Rock ensemble.” Their self-described mission is “blending genres and mixing styles into fabulous long songs for short attention spans!” Formed in Winter 2023 to revive Alex LeBone’s 2012 album ‘Glory Whole’, the band pulls influences from acts like Bowie, Mr Bungle, Devin Townsend, The Cardiacs, and Faith No More. This rich tapestry certainly sets the stage for something unique but do they achieve it?
When Does “Batshit Crazy” Become Genius?
Let’s still be real here, this song is batshit crazy. It’s like being on a funfair ride after two tabs of acid, but also right on the cusp of a bad trip and wondering if your kneecaps are actually spies sent to kill you. Not for one moment does it let you relax, settle in or get comfortable. This isn’t one for lazy Sunday afternoons; this is music for people who want to go on an adventure, and lucky for Le Bone, that’s exactly what we crave.
Is This Progressive Music Without The “Musical Masturbation”?
This is a masterclass in progressive music without ever veering into the realms of musical masturbation. When I went into this song, I wasn’t expecting it to be so damn HEAVY, however to my shock and delight is is! Art Rock has a habit of conjuring up men with cravats, loafers, and slightly rolled-up trousers, all stood around congratulating each other on a dissonant arpeggio. Not here. Prog metal guitars pierce through a lot of this song, and at times, with the synths and strings running beneath them, you’d be forgiven for believing you were listening to the latest symphonic metal album.
The drums are fat, wide, girthy, and very well performed, leading to primal moments in the “Ooo ahh” parts of the song which may or may not have been influenced by finding demo – guess we’ll never know. However, just as easily as it does symphonic metal, this song does a playful “madness” section which was a huge left turn for us but turned out magnificently.
(Later in the song, we’re told to do explicit things to a pig, which if you don’t mind, we think we’ll give that a miss. I’m a music journalist, not a disgraced former prime minister.)
Each element of this song would be a blazing offering in its own genre. Combined, you’re talking full-on masterclass.
Sure, It’s Breathtaking Musicianship, But Is It Actually Good?
And that is always the question with this kind of music. So often it attracts arrogant polymaths with perfect pitch, a bad attitude, and no taste. That isn’t the case here one bit. This is fun, it’s playful, it’s a protest – it’s everything you want in an album chucked into one song and served up to you in the same way as if somebody served you a prawn cocktail, a lasagna, and a trifle on the same plate and told you to “eat up.” You eat up, and somehow, it is fantastic. This song is a genuine marvel, a mystery, an enigma, and a bloody good time rolled into one.
Does Production Really Need Discussing With Le Bone?
We review independent musicians, so we always have to discuss production, but here, we’re not sure we need to bother. We wouldn’t change a thing. Everything has been thought of with meticulous precision and a very keen ear. Every single detail has been considered, from EQ curves to SFX and everything in-between. The sonic landscape is just as wild as the composition, perfectly rendered.
Why Is “Summit” Not For Everyone, Yet So Good?
This isn’t going to be for everyone, and Le Bone clearly knows that. This is the musical equivalent of an ADHD raccoon rummaging through a fancy dress shop. It is bananas but as a result, it is so, so good. It is the whimsical work of musicians doing things many could only aspire to, and we’re all for it. Go on, give it a listen.
