Things Are a Little Bit… – Man With A Corduroy Heart (reviewed by Dave Franklin)

I think it was safe to say that I loved everything about my first sonic encounter with the gloriously named Man with A Corduroy Heart – from the artist’s chosen moniker to the song title, The Joy of Giving Up, to its message to the actual sounds he makes – and I probably said as much when writing about it. I know I did.

So, I have, quite naturally, been looking forward to a whole album of MWACH’s songs. Things Are a Little Bit… (another smile-inducing title) kicks off with the aforementioned track, but for fear of repeating myself and in the name of brevity, I will gloss over that, merely saying that its sounds and sentiment, its gentle and lilting, spacious and lush acoustics set the tone perfectly.

And, although we stay in such wonderfully understated territories for the duration of the album, the songs are intriguing and unique enough to hold the listener’s ear throughout. Doing Nothing is another song that reminds us that we don’t have to play their game (their being the name that you can give to anything that tries to make you conform to fad or fashion)and does so in a swirl of warm vocals over the most minimal of guitar strums and bass pulses. It also advocates doing nothing for the sake of it and doing it in the company of someone special.

Little One is simply the most beautiful celebration of new life, a lullaby for the baby and a musical self-help group and support mechanism for the parent all rolled into one. Do You Know Any Oasis Mate is a song for anyone who has trained, practised, perfected and performed music, travelled the country, played every toilet venue and open mic night, toiled for their art as an original artist, played to two men and a dog (I’ve done that), worked to draw the audience in, died on stage, lived off service station sandwiches and run the car home on fumes and who is ritually faced with that titular shout out. And why is it always Oasis? (I think that had Rudyard Kipling written his classic poem “If” today, this is exactly what it would have been about.)

And with passing nods to everything from the educational value of Channel 5 to the Caravan as a sign of accepting that you are not so young anymore and working for a boss who is clearly insane (aren’t they all?), this is a great album. Not just musically, and it is undoubtedly that, but lyrically. Things Are a Little Bit… neatly puts into words all the thoughts that most people have about modern life. Blur might have famously stated that Modern Life is Rubbish, but at least Man With A Corduroy Heart articulates precisely why. (Whilst occasionally reminding us of the really rewarding stuff too.)