Guessmen, "Black Balloons / Death by a Thousand Lashes"

With their pop game sharpened to a fine point, Guessmen are still exploring the noir-cartoon world of vocalist Alan Edge's head making them an appealingly dark-and-day-glo experience. The A side of this 7" single, "Black Balloons," forms like a murder of clouds stamped with an indelible paperclip-and-biro tattooed hook, the thick synth melody coming on like tar flavored honey.

 

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Setting itself in motion with pork scratching percussion loops like Her Majesty's Prison breaking out the robot guards, "Black Balloons" is the sound of low quality speed psychosis. It is a rut of club hedonism before an antisocial bass instigated mental collapse, the beat drop prompting one of those everyone-starts-moving-at-the-same-moment moments.

The non-LP B-side cut is 100% Working Man's Club video console acid, packing more swing than Mr. Bumble's hand. "Death by a Thousand Lashes" runs up and down the grooves, a skewed snakes and ladders game of bass, drum and synth. Behind its brief spiky percussion and bent reality bass there are plenty of left turns and plummets.