King Creosote - Flick The Vs

Flick The Vs sees a snarl added to Kenny Anderson's dulcet tones, and frequent bad language spells out the fact that he's got a few things to be pissed off about. Proving that he's ever the iconoclast, the album's more experimental nature is seemingly at odds with the more straightforward arrangements of KC Rules OK and Bombshell. It's ironic that first single Coast By Coast, written in collaboration with Steve Mason and ostensibly a rather grumpy declaration of his uneasy retreat to Anstruther following thwarted ambitions in the music biz, becomes perhaps the most perfect pop song in Anderson's canon. Another highlight, Camels Swapped For Wives, goes on to broach the difficult subject of "the effects of mental illness on the whole family" in heartbreakingly honest fashion. Ultimately, each number yields a markedly different style, but paradoxically - because of the high quality in Anderson's songwriting - this makes for the King's most consistent and sublime effort to date.