Trajectories

Ever since he stepped off Mojo Fury’s drum stool and plonked himself behind a piano as Rams’ Pocket Radio, Lisburn’s Peter McCauley has been a name to watch in Northern Ireland. This three-disc set collects the EPs McCauley has recently put out in quick succession, and the three title tracks – ‘Dieter Rams Has Got The Pocket Radios’, ‘Dogs Run In Packs’ and ‘1+2’ – go some way towards justifying the praise so far. This is kitchen-sink piano-rock – high-octane, cymbal-smashing bombast whose swagger is leavened with huge melodies and plenty of heart and soul. The chorus of ‘1+2’, in particular, is a heart-swelling beauty with winning harmonies from Shauna Tohill of Silhouette.
However, when the tempo falls so does the strike rate. It doesn’t work for me when McCauley presents himself as a sensitive piano man: lyrics are awkward or sentimental (or both on ‘You & Me, Babe’), his voice gets contorted into unconvincing shapes and some of the arrangements are downright schmaltzy – note the syrupy strings on ‘Friendship Fails You’. Then again, you’d not be surprised to hear half of these songs cropping up on the latest American teen drama. His debut album could well be a defining moment.