Plush - Fed

Fables of lost art buried under the rubble of an industry blinkered against true genius always hold the attraction of mysticism. Liam Hayes' second album, Fed, it has been claimed, is a long lost masterpiece, and is the result of an obsessive project to reflect on tape the songs which Hayes, in his guise as Plush, had meticulously conceptualised and perfected in mind only. Without a label to initially promote the album, Fed has emerged spectre-like over the years, earning a Japanese release, and now, finally, a ‘re-release’ on UK shores. What’s immediately apparent is that it’s the work of an artist working on the periphery, who unquestionably has imbibed his music with something of the visionary. Haye’s musical proclamations, however, regularly conjure up the image of a man and his sandwich board, whooping out wild revelations in the street. Though every now and again, if you stop to listen, there’s just a hint of that promised genius mumbled amidst his rant. [Paul Neeson]