(Morning Star, Saturday 08 July 2006)
ALBUM: Aberfeldy - Do Whatever Turns You On
(Rough Trade)
IN terms of twee pop with a hint of the 1970s, Aberfeldy are up there with the best.
As a country whose prime exports number shortbread and skirts for men, Scotland's grasp of fashion is not what it might be.
As such, Aberfeldy's fellow limp-wristed noiseniks Belle and Sebastian rule the Caledonian airwaves, all gentle jingly-jangly pop played by foppish boys with Frank Spencer faces. And berets.
So it's nice that Aberfeldy have come back from their 2004 debut Young Forever having turned the guitars up a notch - to a tentative three, in fact - in an effort to dethrone B&S.
With the acerbic wit on show on Do Whatever Turns You On, this sort of fighting spirit is not entirely out of character. These sweet-voiced folky also-rans have a grit to them that songs like Uptight - name-checking the People's Friend magazine, always a plus in pop - and Poetry exhibit in a pleasingly straightforward manner.
The high point would have to be the title track, giving airtime to the idiosyncrasies that separate people from each other, a favoured conceit of the indie fan.
The gentle indie tunesmithery is still here and yet the appearance of a bit of gumption seems to have set Aberfeldy apart from their peers, with tunes to please everyone on the cool continuum from Russell Brand to Ken Bruce.
Et tu, Belle and Sebastian?
