Gans: German for goose.
Like a PSA, GANS come blasting out of your speakers and dominate your world. We continue to live in volatile and uncertain times, but music and the wider Arts sector will always be my lifesaver. Thomas Rhodes -bass, guitars and vocals and Euan Woodman – vocals and drums met at college and were passionate about playing music, no rules, no timetable, just play what your heart tells you. GANS evolved out of a necessity to think beyond the parameters of getting married and settling down. Absolutely no harm in that way of life, but for the most part our dreams are way out of reach.
Their recent statement about street music here in Birmingham is testament to their authenticity and crucial to protecting our rights as individuals. We are nothing if our creativity is left to rot. The Arts is not for the privileged few; it is a collective body of ideas, designs, emotions and expressions that ignite our shrivelled bodies so we may enjoy our time on this chaotic spinny thing we call home.
The Midlands is well known for the talent it possesses; the questions it raises as to its survival are much harsher as we contemplate the dire consequences should we fail in supporting our artists.
The techno, trance beats of ‘It’s Just Life’ are accompanied by a full pelt visual juggernaut chasing through all the vagaries of life. I am finding that our psyche, our thoughts are scarily accurate and a consequence of our upbringing, how something so pure and unimpeachable can rise out of poverty, strife and internal conflict which outweighs the struggles we face in the outside world. In direct contrast you have the delicate, diaphanous ambience of ‘Everything In Extreme’ where the noise levels are considerably reduced allowing for deliberation, and self-regulation. The uptown traffic feel of ‘Far and Wide’ reminds me of the 70’s tunes that had a swagger and strut about them, as Euan shouts at anything that moves. Unlike other ‘angry’ music this is the telling off you’ve been waiting for and the one you totally deserve.
Watching them decimate the Town Hall in Birmingham back in July, that was the first time I had heard of them, and I tell you, I will be raving about that night for years to come. I was chuffed to discover that Thomas had his first taste of music via the Jazz scene, and I had volunteered at this year’s Birmingham Jazz and Blues Festival, how the world turns, we have more similarities than differences when it comes down to it.
This astonishing debut is housed under the Strap Originals label, under the watchful eye of Peter Doherty, giving our local boys a platform to amplify their feelings and manifest their ideas for us all to enjoy. With songs about mental health ‘Oh George’ and our mod cons in ‘This Product’ there’s something for everybody.
The album displays an extensive array of sounds and sights, and offers many styles and layers, take ‘Well Done’ for example, a piece with disembodied voices, enigmatic yet chaotic, intelligent as it is eloquent and mysterious, what I took for a conversation at first, maybe it can be seen as that. Make time for the obtuse, the estranged, the weird, take a goosey, goosey gander off the beaten track because it’s good for the soul, and a tonic to do away with all the frowstiness that has plagued us.
Gans – the only prescription you need, the only subscription you need.
Azra Pathan
GANS – Good For The Soul out now via Strap Originals.