Basics, The - Like A Brother (Single)

The Basics seem hell-bent on shaking up their image. First fans began to notice changes in their music at live shows and then images of those once dapper lads began cropping up sans suits (well sans clothes, actually.) Now on the Like A Brother single cover, the group looks more like Happyland (remember Calypso?) as the songs are written in Japanese and English, and a colourful animation typically seen in those booths where you can take photo stickers accompanies this.

The desire for change has resulted in a departure in music epitomised by the song and single, Like A Brother. The track could almost be an anthem for the MTV Generation as the music is so busy (meaning there is little chance of your attention being diverted elsewhere) and you get the impression that even Kris Schroeder (bass/vocals) and Wally De Backer (drums/vocals) weren’t entirely sure what sort of song they wanted to write.

In just over four minutes we are treated (or subjected, given your view) to the nice harmonies we’ve come to expect, but these are interspersed with a stack of time changes and variations in style, meaning at different points you could be listening to: elegant gangsters in a shoot-out dance; a bad-guy’s theme song; a pop song; some clocks ticking; something intergalactic; a cabaret act; or an old monster film soundtrack. Put simply, there is no way you can pigeonhole this song. So clearly the penchant for snippets and trinkets (something Gotye has used previously to his advantage) has found its way onto this record. As a result, some fans will either love it or loathe it. (As an aside, I certainly felt the latter when I heard Bob Evan’s Goodnight, Bull Creek! because it almost felt like a faux-Jebediah record, but that could have been the point.)

The second track and the only b-side proper is Money (Gimme, Gimme). This one is all about heavy, seventies guitar produced in a noticeably slick way. If you can also hear remnants of The Kinks’ All Day And All Of The Night, then I’ve taught you well. (Though the very keen observer will note that this song was actually released in the sixties.)

The final three songs are probably included to cater for Gotye fans, as we get not one but three different remixes of With This Ship. It goes without saying that they all have elements of the original put to dance music, and two also have pirates walking the plank. Personally, I find having three different versions of the same song redundant no matter how great you think it is. (Even though dance acts have been doing this on singles for years and perhaps this could be one of the reasons why physical singles are not selling as many units, who knows?) It would be interesting to see whether iTunes users will buy every song or will they just opt for the one b-side, but I suppose if they’re completists then they’ll opt for everything.

To make more sense of all this perhaps it is best to go back to The Basics themselves. A few weeks ago I interviewed Wally De Backer and two of his quotes may put the new music into perspective. He described the group’s new direction as: “Blues and smooth music that rocks.” He also said that: “We delight in making all of our own songs sound like bad covers of classic hits”.

So there you have it, clear as mud. Perhaps it is best to just say that you’ll have to listen to the new smooth but rocking blues music for yourself and ultimately judge. Because the question remains: Have The Basics decided to blur the lines between the music synonymous with the days of old and Gotye? Methinks quite possibly.

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