Thursday 28th January 2010

SICAMORE – “WHY MUST WE”

I’m pre-conditioned to love Sicamore, being that it’s the name given to the side-project of William frontman, Gavin Housley. I’ve been listening to his bathroom/bedroom solo recordings in some form for some time now, once even honoured to have him give a rare performance in our garden. He covered Jayhawks songs, while The Sequins/Honeytrap drummer bled all over his guitar.

But on “Why Must We” there’s a giant step taken, not so much forward, as outwards. Even if you’re a huge fan of William, it’s likely that you’re unaware of Housley’s solo work, because he’s kept it hidden away, so at odds is it with the triumphant force of the band. But listening closer, the clues are there – that guitar, those sometimes cryptic sometimes direct lyrical allusions, and then that voice. That voice.

“Why Must We” comes almost fully formed too, not just a guitar and voice, but fleshed out to suggest a kind of yearning to communicate on a wider scale, lyrics even wrapped around these same concerns, of trying not to say the same old thing, the same old way. Words creep out rather than exorcised by sheer aggression, but there’s the same intent present that defines his vocals in William, whispered into ears now, but still softly blistering like slow summer sun. You may have to lean in a little harder to hear, but “Why Must We” is Sicamore leaning back, meeting you halfway, for the first time.

Sicamore – “Why Must We”

(Photo: Andrei Mitroshin)