The Charlatans seem to have somehow avoided the ravages of time. New single, Love Is Ending, is concrete evidence to support this claim. Tim Burgess still sounds like a hungry twenty year old, despite now being officially middle aged. Even as they enter the third decade of their career, they’re producing music that sounds fresh and pertinent. Tim has kept the Charlatans vehicle safely on the road without jack-knifing, but what can we learn from this impressive longevity of good inter-band relations? Perhaps contrary to popular belief it is actually Tim who is the nicest man in rock, and not the much touted Dave Grohl.
What’s clear on this new single is that the boys have been listening to the Sex Pistols, noticeable by the song’s urgency and a riff that may raise an eyebrow on the face of Steve Jones when he hears it. It is a relief to hear the Charlatans continuing to push forward with a bit more aggression, as that’s where their strengths lie these days in what is now essentially the autumn of their career. It was this sort of energy that revitalised them on their last album, You Cross My Path, and this first taste of their new LP, Who We Touch, indicates they’ve not lost that spark, and revisited the 70’s instead of the 80’s influenced New Order sound of the last record.
Young pretenders take note – you may have the music press singing your praises today and be farting out hit singles in your sleep, but in twenty years will your life mirror that of Mr Burgess’, living it up in L.A and preparing the release of your bands 11th album? I think not.
Matt Humphrey