The Slate Pipe Banjo Draggers have a lot going for them, but the name isn’t one of them.
Still, forget thoughts of mexican pipe blowers, as this here combo formed in early 1990’s Camden but currently reside in Leeds. Confused? You will be. Andrew Rowe is the head computer manipulator, working from a collation of found & field sounds via his minidisk, and a variety of samples of toys and keyboards collected from car boot sales. this is low-scale, bargain basement ambience.
“Get Yourself A Wash” throws up the sounds and electric drones which fuel Death In Vegas'edgy rock feel, though less effective are “500 Romanian Lies” & “One Aeroplane” itself, which comprises a mixture of ambient experimental landscapes. All this is shudderingly familiar to me, like every time my father calls and leaves his phone running the entire journey home with my answer machine picking up every strange little second. This feeling is compounded by the fact I always seem compelled to listen to the very end. Which is kinda like the premise of listening to The Slate Pipe Banjo Draggers.
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"One Aeroplane" is the first release on Leeds label Mandolin Records and is available through the band's website at www.slatepipe.co.uk. It's a curious and not exactly auspicious start, though where they'll go from here is at least a course difficult to plot.
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