A sometimes inventive but often ineffectual LP
Trouble In Mind
Released: 7.8.15
More information on Ultimate Painting’s Tumblr site
Halfway through the latest effort by Mazes’ James Hoare and Veronica Falls’ Jack Cooper is a song called Break The Chain that ironically doesn’t signal a new direction for the lilting West Coast-inspired duo, but does sound nearly exactly like a stripped back version of The Lemonheads. Basically, Ultimate Painting aren’t breaking the mould of jangly, laid-back guitar music and pushing any boundaries, which is a shame considering the talent behind it. Green Lanes is a pleasant enough listen, with tracks like (I’ve Got The) Sanctioned Blues containing some chord progressions inspired by country music and Woken By Noises providing the most urgent guitars with a neat spoken word narrative. But it’s also derivative and, at times, ineffectual.