Population : 5 - Population : 5 (Musak)

Ever wonder what Phil King has been up to? Wonder no longer! Hot on the heels of last year’s stellar solo debut from Emma Anderson, another ex Lush notable (also of Felt, The Jesus & Mary Chain and others!), has unveiled a new project in Anglo-Portuguese band Population : 5. And like Anderson’s debut, all indications are King’s direction is also the right one. Admittedly, fans of King’s previous work will have to shift gears from dream pop to garage rock for this self-titled debut on new Portuguese imprint, Musak. Here, KIng shares guitar duties with Fernando “Pio” Bardedo and between the two, paint a Orwellian landscape for vocalist Francisco “Xico” Afonso’s Mark E. Smith esque snarl (“I Don’t Share”, “Dance Floor”).
Back in the early ‘60s, the use of “wet” spring reverb in amplification meant the guitar could mimic the sound of waves and hence surf rock was born. Perhaps an homage can be heard in “Midnight Surfer”; a fitting selection for a Quentin Tarantino score if you’re listening, Hollywood. The album’s fantastically retro sci-fi cover art lends itself to that era as does its analog 8-track (in mono) recording technique.

Population : 5 stick to the surf side of the garage consistently throughout the record’s twelve tracks. Whether it be slower-paced numbers like “Runaway” or blistering up-tempo tracks like “Candy”, the rhythm section of Pedro Jervell (drums) and Mark Shaw.Julian Hayr (bass) maintain perfect cadence. Reminiscent of The Cramps, the penultimate “Jet Liner” is a full-on garage punk freakout at its finest while “Peter Prank” and the closing “I’m Lost” emulate Fun House era Stooges. Not only does Population : 5 sound like it was an absolute joy to create and at a tick over thirty-five minutes, is one of the best straight-forward rock records you will hear all year.

For more information or to make a purchase, please visit the Population : 5 Bandcamp page.

Fans of Lush can also check out the newly-released Lush: A Far From Home Movie. The film was assembled by former bassist Phil King from Super 8 footage he shot during the group’s time on the road.