The David Nelligan Thing: Dark Matters

Something of a Brian Wilson figure, given his singular approach to making records, Cork’s David Nelligan has written, performed, arranged, recorded and produced this entire album with only the barest of outside contributions.
Nelligan appears to have several musical personalities and the 14 genre-straddling songs here range from accessible, tuneful pop such as ‘Hell Is A Waiting Room’, a Ben Folds-like piano-led tune, via-the spacey, electronic title-track to ‘Flip A Coin’, which has late-period Beach Boys melodic tendencies. Elsewhere ‘Every Day We Wake Up’ recalls eels at their finest, while ‘Beer Soaked Blues’, a throwaway country jaunt, borders on parody/novelty. ‘Human Condition’ sounds like a blend of ‘70s prog and ‘80s pop; and the catchy ‘Noughts + Crosses’ calls to mind the They Might Be Giants’ ‘Birdhouse In Your Soul’. Intriguing if a tad overwhelming when taken in one sitting!

Key Track: ‘Noughts + Crosses’