I know many, and definitely me, bemoan the end of The Sugarplastic. I have always loved the angular earlier stuff of that band and so No as an album delights me. The Baltimore quartet have that angular. slightly chaotic, but splendid Guitar Pop down to a tee.
Previous to this, Tomato Flower have been more noted more for their Dream Pop, slightly pastoral and gently Psychedelic. This album still contains a couple of great examples of that past, but is largely more about the Intelligent Alternative Indie Pop that we know and adore.
Destroyer is an ideal example of early Sugarplastic, despite it getting a little shouty the odd time. The instrumental arrangement on Radical is very Polly Brown. It is the arrangements across the album that are captivating, a little basic at times, but very inventive.
The Riff on Sally & Me is almost Prog and yet Tomato Flower are comfortable with mellow Pop. Temple Of The Mind is almost Disco Fun and Harlequin encroaches 70s Pop Rock Easy Listening. Do It is very New Wave, even Devo at times, almost mechanical.
Lost Lunar One even gets close to Dream Pop and reveals another fine arrangement. Magdelene even as a Fripp feel to the riff. The whole thing is incredibly engaging and the vocal sharing between Jamison Murphy and Austyn Wohlers dovetails beautifully. Wonderful Stuff!
You can listen to and buy the album here. It is available on Vinyl, CD and as a download.
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