The Bees - Free the Bees

Sun 4th Jul, 2004 in Music Reviews

So as to give The Bees new album, Free the Bees, a meaningful review, I’ve given the review disc an absolute thrashing. In the last four days, its been played at least twice a day, just in case it was a grower. And, yes it does grow each and every time you listen to it; you pick up more of the nuances in each of the tracks, but that’s like most albums.

Their first album, Sunshine Hit Me, was recorded in Paul Butler’s tin shed and the band swore they’d never leave, but after a stint in a real studio, Paul decided that it was time for a shift. The Bees have moved out of the tin shed, and set up shop in much more plush surrounds, the famed Abbey Road. The ghosts of Abbey Road have obviously had an effect on The Bees, some of the material on this record would not have been out of place in the sixties.

This album is sure to garner The Bees more critical acclaim, but I wonder if that acclaim will translate into commercial success. Bands like Jet and The Darkness have borrowed heavily from sixties and seventies rock with hooky singles that have generated commercial success.

On Free the Bees, The Bees have created a wonderful album that musically sits easily alongside The Rolling Stones, Beatles, Byrds, early Dylan, and according to my father, Paul Butterfield and his Blues Band.

What the album lacks is a real hook, it doesn’t have a single that would draw in your average alt-rock radio listener. The first single off the album, Wash in the Rain, sounds like it should be on The Byrds’ Greatest Hits, with its Hammond organ, wahed out guitars and jangley percussion. This track has been added to Triple J’s play list, so expect to hear it a bit on the radio over the next little while.

Whilst No Atmosphere is a great track, I think that Horsemen should have been released as the single. It has enough of hook to get your keener listener to think about actually purchasing it. This was the track that has most gotten into my head through my repeated listens to this album, and every time I hear it my head starts to bob and my toes start to tap.
Track five, Chicken Payback sounds like something you’d expect to hear at a sixties retro disco. It has a hook that reminds me of Chubby Checker’s The Twist, and would not be out of place at the diner on Happy Days.

One of the pleasures of this album is hearing the Hammond Organ. On The Russian it features as the main instrument. It’s a toe tapping instrumental track that draws from Hal David’s work with Burt Bacharach, as well as the free jazz movement of the sixties and seventies. I Love You is another tack the Hal and Bacharach would be quite proud of, and shows the diversity of this album.

This is a work that deserves critical acclaim, its referential without copying; it doesn’t sit still; and most importantly, its incredibly fun. I’m sure in years to come, we’ll see The Bees’ albums turn up in lists of the most influential artists of all time. If you pride yourself in having a collection which is different and contains the classics, I would implore you to add Free the Bees.