Foxton & Hastings - The Butterfly Effect

 From The Jam bandmates branch out under their own names.  This being their third joint offering - 2012’s Back in the Room, 2016’s Smash the Clock - and is another consumate collection of tracks that nag like you've heard them before and ultimately reward as a stand-alone work.
The Tribute Band might be the day job (and a very popular one at that), but after nearly 15 years working together Bruce and Russell have forged a strong writing partnership with a nod to their influences, their past, and their on stage presence.
I can't be the only one hoping they sneak in a few tracks into their From The Jam shows - they have done it before, much to my enjoyment (but not always that of the crowd as they fall a bit silent patiently waiting for another Jam shout-a-long).

'The Butterfly Effect' is comforting in that it's like a run through a fine record collection mixing Motown, psychedelia, Beatles, Small Faces, and a bit of blue-eyed soul.
Influence worn on the sleeve certainly, but no this is no copy-cat collection.  This is an album stuffed full of great tunes delivered with confidence, recognition of the past, and one eye on the future.

The vocals are strong, the bass is strong, the drums are solid (courtesy of Mark Brzezicki) - in fact that is a basic fundamental throughout the whole album.

"Electronic Lover" re-imagines the bassline from The Beatles "Come Together" adds a bit of Yardbirds and (to these ears at least) a smidgeon of Sam & Dave.  "Feet Of the Ground" has a chilled summery feel, almost Jazzy and a nod perhaps to the soulful stylings of where Bruce's ex-bandmate went next.  "Wanted" performs a similar trick (and dare I say this) is not far from a Paul Weller track (Russell Hastings is no mimic, he's just blessed with a voice that sounds like Mr W)

Lead single "Lula" storms along (I hope that is one they decide to put in their live shows.  And the next track - "She Said" - power pop par excellence (with added mandolin).

"Circles" is a storming rocker lifting the tone and is  followed by the horn-drenched "Time On Your Side" (very probably one of the best tracks here).
"Two Of Us" maintains the intereest with echoes of the past again with Small Faces-like "sha-la-las" (sounds a bit rubbish when written down, but believe me, it has earworm written all through it)

The mood slows with the contemplative "Rain" bridging into the string washing of "Too Old To Cry, Too Young To Die".  The jazzy feel of "Walking With Me" continues the downbeat tone.  The grouping of these 3 songs together is I think the right thing - separated and peppered elsewhere on the album, I think they would lose impact.

How do you close an album?  Well you need something upbeat and epic.  And "Anything You Want" does just that.  A horn driven intro opening into a verse, middle eight chorus as good as anything on this album.  And then a swirling Hammond kicks in completing the picture.  There are echoes of "Got To Get You Into My Life" in the horns and chorus melody, and an almost Revolver-esque pschy coda.
But I repeat coincidence and influence - as Foxton and Hastings say: "It's not about "oh this one must sound like The Who, let's stick a bit of Beatles in here and some Jam there", it's about is it a good tune or not?"
And they are all fine tunes constituting a very very fine album - best consumed in one sitting to take in all the various influences and rises and fall in mood.

It's a fine album and one I hope finds a bigger audience and outlet than the Merch table at a From The Jam gig.  It deserves it.

She Said

Time On Your Side

Anything You Want