Ballagroove Records

hello! havent been on the IOM for years, but was just looking on the net and came accross this, so is Rysical Pheck a sub group of the Tholtans?? sorry im years behind???
Been listening to Ground is Sound all day, nice one! Hope to see yous lot play when i come back in the summer, dont know if you will remember me Gypo??! Enjoy the rest of the bank holiday, take care Sam

Hi Sam, yeah of course I remember you , hope you are well, where are you ?, glad you like the track, no we’re not linked to the Tholtans, other than by having Kin as a singer, then there is me and Shod (who i’m sure you know too). Hopefully see you over the summer, we’ve got some gigs planned to hopefully you’ll be able to come along )

Slaynt Vie

Am living in London, at Uni, hope to see yous play in the summer fella! Heard nothing but good about RF!
take care
Sam

Here is Declans Review (as it doesn’t appear to be on his site anymore) -

Never Agree to Anything When Drunk !

Ok here’s the deal, Gypo sold me a copy of the new Rhysical Pheck cd whilst I was drunk at Breeze @ Barcelona (although I’d have bought one anyway) and made me promise to review it on here whether I liked it or not. Something I wouldn’t have agreed to if I’d been sober, because when I started this site I had one rule: ”Keep It Positive.” Particularly, where local bands (or websites/writers etc.) are concerned because if someone goes to the trouble to attempt something in their spare time for the love of it, it would be petty of me to rip it to shreads on my little website, just because it doesn’t happen to be to my taste. (Though the gloves are off where corporate whores like the Red Hot Chilli Peppers are concerned).

So I’ve resolved to play nice. The difficulty with this approach is it’s easier to slag than to praise. When talking about music it’s simpler to pinpoint what I dislike, and where the musicians have gone wrong because this is the place where it jars in my ears and stands out. Conversely, the words don’t flow as easily when I want to praise something, what I like about music is often something inate or it’s a feel, a mood or an emotion? I suspect that I am not, yet, a good enough writer to write positive reviews well. Anyway this was a very difficult review to write –

Rhysical Pheck - The Little People Album (on the wonderfully titled Ballagroove Records)

I’ve listened to this album for most of the weekend and procrastinated over the review long enough. I’ve got to do it. No! I want to do it.

This is a perfect morning-after album. You can sit back, relax and allow the music to bubble about you, letting your half formed ideas and dim recollections of the previous night float around your head, so that you can really enjoy your hangover. The album has also provided ideal accompaniment for the mountain of writing I’ve done over this weekend. Whilst not inspiring what I have written, it has informed, coloured and soundtracked it.

On first hearing I was struck by the breadth and scope of the musical vision, and the quality of the recording. There is a surface sheen under which a laid back but infectious groove rolls; transporting the listener to a pleasant happier place. Through this basis, strange and appealing sounds and guitar effects bubble and spark, starting deep in the mix, rising to flicker momentarily in full view before, receding back.

Many of the songs have an Indianesque Rhythm and this leads to the most obvious comparison – Cornershop, but I am also reminded of the final Boo Radleys lp (although I’m not sure why!)

Initially, I was a little unsure about Kin’s voice, I felt it was too breathy and eager –perfect for a Christian Rock band but out of place here, but gradually I grew to realise that it is a key component of the Rhysical Pheck sound. Actually, it is the blissfully euphoric quality in the singing that encapsulates this record.

Many of the songs seem to be about travel, but travelling without reaching a destination, moving for its own sake – walking “a 1000 miles before you reach the mountains”, while “beautiful swans drift by”, you always get the impression that the songs are going somewhere but never reach their goal because getting there never mattered much in the first place.

It is as if the band want their music and the audience to exist in a happy void of contentment – like Lennon sang “switch off your mind and float upstream”. And that is why I’ll be boring people silly about this record for the next few months. Very Highly Recommended.

Gypo! It’s Brendan from the Wickerman!! I don’t know if this is the place to contact you, i hope it is...
How are things? It so nice meeting you, what an amazing gig! Are you going to the Brixton show in October? Get in touch if you are and we will meet again..
The CD is cool by the way, we listened to it as soon as we got home. Caroline has had it since so i shall be stealing it back for further listening! Again, we should gig together...
So, get in touch! Mail me on [edited out to protect from spam], love Brendan (and Caroline).

Hey Brendan / Caroline ))

Will send you a mail very soon, lovely to hear from you, very busy this week as its my little sisters wedding next week, but will be in touch soon, unfortunately don’t think we are going to be able to make it to the Brixton gig ((((((, just a bit too expensive travelling to / from the Island and staying in London, gutted, especially as I’ve just read that Steve Mason from the Beta Band is also playing, ah well, speak to you soon, best wishes, Gyp.

Whadda bout ye Gypo!?

Hugh let me hear the Rhysical Pheck album... Wow, what a trip! beautiful tunes, amazingly psychedelic. Keep it up! All the very best!