It astounds me how I can still discover a band (even if 'a band', as Mark E. Smith pointed out, 'is what plays in Blackpool') like The Indelicates, more than ten years after their debut. A band that up to some point in time had managed to pass me by entirely. Which would hardly be that big a deal were it not for the fact that during these ten years I was searching for the very band.
I do have my excuses though. For instance, to give you some idea of just how obscure The Indelicates are, be aware that you will not find one review (not a blurb, not a comment) of an album like Elevator Music anywhere on the Internet. Not even Popmatters bothered with it. The very Popmatters that once proclaimed The Indelicates one of two or three bands that matter. And they were right, too.
The band is basically Simon Indelicate and Julia Indelicate (yes, these are their real names) and various musicians who happen to be around. Julia was once in a hipster girl group called The Pipettes that time has erased (I still have fond memories of some of their early singles though). As for Simon, let us cut the crap. Simon Indelicate is one of the greatest songwriters this century has given us. Over these 10-odd years he has created a body of work anyone this side of Luke Haines would envy (not an idle reference point, by the way, as Luke's pop sensibilities and cynical wit are very much an influence): a fully-fledged debut, a classic second, a brilliantly bizarre concept album, a patchy yet masterful fourth, two more eccentric concept albums featuring a greater number of ideas than the complete discography of your favourite artist. Add to this a couple of operas and some fucked-up punk offshoot I have not yet had the pleasure to hear.
In a word, remarkable. And rather tragic, too, as the world (and me, up to some point two months ago) continues to not give a damn. In case you do, though, go straight to this place and start paying for art: https://corpor.at/artists/The_Indelicates/
For me, it all began with American Demo (2008), a debut that sounds like Black Box Recorder mixed with Manic Street Preachers. You simply cannot miss the songwriting talent that is all over songs like "Unity Mitford", "We Hate The Kids", "The Last Significant Statement To Be Made In Rock 'n' Roll". In fact, if you do not fall in love with these songs by just reading the titles, wait until you hear the first line of "New Art For The People".
Songs For Swinging Lovers (2010; check out the album cover) is more masterful still. Whereas American Demo has a misstep or two ("Stars", for instance), the second album is impeccable. Murder ballads, overblown cabaret, ruthless digs at younger generation, an unlikely country single titled "Sympathy For The Devil". Diversity is starting to show. And "Flesh" is a classic. I mean, in this day and age careers are ruined for lyrics like that.
And then, as if they could possibly go even more left-field, The Indelicates released a concept album about a religious cult leader called David Koresh Superstar (2011) that blew both Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice out of the water. This is songwriting masterclass, and could well be their masterpiece.
Diseases Of England (2013) is the difficult second disguised as fourth. It is a little all over the place, but do not let it distract you from the fact that most would kill to write a song like "Everything Is Just Disgusting". Or Le Godemiché Royal". Or "Class". In the end, I only object to the two Julia-sung ballads in the middle of the album. The rest is gold, and "Not Alone" happens to have some of the most unsettling lyrics I have ever heard.
Elevator Music (2015) is another concept album, and yet again the concept is not what you would expect. The story is about the Internet achieving consciousness and going into space, but this time I would advise to focus on the music. This album takes a few listens to sink in, but once it does - you will understand the anthemic power behind "Beyond The Radio Horizon" and the sheer beauty of "The Last Man On The Moon". It is an album that just gets better with time.
Finally, Juniverbrecher (2017) is a concept album about Brexit where the concept revolves around banishing the Jimmy Savile demon. The record is quite an exhilarating ride that should be experienced in one sitting (this is their most homogenous sounding LP, mostly cabaret and music hall) to enjoy the very British mood as well as the excellent melodies that simply have to be heard by many more people than they probably will.
"We all love The Smiths and we dig The Clash,
But the smell of leather is intoxicating..."
