The challenge for the multi-talented Alex and Tom White (i.e. The Electric Soft Parade) when recording their second album was to avoid the pro-tools of the trade. While their debut album, Holes In The Wall, buzzed with stylish loops and polished samples, The American Adventure was recorded almost entirely on analogue tape to capture a more authentic soundscape. And it works.
From the electrifying, country-blues opening riff of ‘Things I’ve Done Before’ TESP create a breeziness that recalls all that was good about Britpop. The stand-out tracks, ‘Bruxellisation’ and ‘Lose Yr Frown’, swirl around quirky guitar lines with a Blurred panache while the darker ‘Lights Out’ and ‘The Wrongest Thing In Town’ eerily revisit Radiohead circa 1995.
But, like some of the latter’s work, The American Adventure threatens to desert the listener halfway through; the title track in particular sways dangerously towards self-produced over-indulgence.
Significantly, the final mastering session was held at Abbey Road Studios and there’s more than a nod to The Beatles’ in the simple harmonies that lift this album to its greatest, shimmering heights.