Jangly and melodic, The Harvest Ministers started out in the late ‘80s plying thoughtful, intelligent indie-pop in the vein of The Go Betweens and Prefab Sprout. Led by songwriter William Merriam, the band’s glory years featured vocalist Gerardette Bailey and multi-instrumentalist Padraig McCaul (Blades bassist Brian Foley appears on some early recordings).
Opening with their 1991 debut single, the gentle ‘You Do My World The World Of Good’, this 18-track career overview gives a powerful sense of what they had to offer. What is immediately apparent is that they were a band ahead of their time: ‘If It Kills Me And It Will’ and ‘Six O’Clock Is Rosary’ predate the likes of Belle and Sebastian by years; the more recent ‘Tombstone Eyes’ doesn’t sound a million miles from something Eels might have recorded.
‘Grey Matters’, from their debut album Little Dark Mansion, would have fared well under the Americana tag and they arguably reached their creative stride with the jaunty ‘The Warmest Heart’, which recalls the sweetly textured work of The LAs at their finest
Merriman might not have the best voice in rock history. Still, his unaffected, child-like singing on the languid ballad ‘When I Become Yours’ stands out and piano-based ballad ‘Saved By The Love Of You’ recalls Ben Folds Five. Other highlights include ‘Friday Night Séance’, ‘A River Wedding’ and the acoustic whimsy of ‘That Won’t Wash’, from their Setanta album The Feeling Mission.
OUT NOW.