Felix NEill

"Kiss My Sweet Apocalypse" is the debut double-LP and 2CD set from Julian Cope's group, Black Sheep. This here is the double vinyl LP set which has a significantly different track list to the CD.

In common with most people who hear this, I really didn't like it that much at first, but it's dusty charms reveal themselves over the course of a few listens. I guess as good a starting point as any is the parched cover version of "Just Like Leila Khaled Said" from the Teardrop Explodes second album "Wilder". Here reduced to basically an acoustic riff strummed over and over with a distant synth picking out that classic melody. This is great stuff for Cope heads everywhere and is just about worth the price of admission on it's own.

Also great is the Holy McGrail led title track which is 24 minutes of krauty synth drones and buzzed out textures, sounding not unlike a darker Queen Elizabeth.

The album is mostly lyric free apart from the repeated protest chants appearing occasionally. "War! Peace!" is a typical example, but for the most part this stuff wears very thin, very quickly.

I believe there are spin off albums due sometime from several members of the Black Sheep group. Indeed the first one, from former Universal Panzies frontguy, Christophe F. has already appeared and is available over at Head Heritage. Christophe F. also leads the fourth side of this album with a brace of acoustic 'n' mellotron singalongs from around the acid campfire. Accomplished.

Vinyl rip at 320 Kbps.

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