Admiral Fallow

★★★★

The Idea Of You CHEMIKAL UNDERGROUND. CD/DL/LP

Long-gestating fourth LP, former Delgados drummer Paul Savage again produces.

If Glasgow’s Admiral Fallow aren’t the most prolific, it’s understandable. The kind of intricate mosaic that takes time to map and mix, The Idea

Of You sounds labour intensive in the best sense, its evolving, detailed arrangements taking in Sufjan Stevens-like woodwind, elements of Philly soul, angular ’80s pop and more. The moody, hypnotic Tuesday Grey, with its almost Police-like chorus, teems with carefully marshalled invention, while The Grand National, 1993, knee-deep in frontman Louis Abbott’s usual lyrical intrigue, builds to the most exquisitely laid-back chorus, its groove sublime. A tiptoe stretch for excellence is similarly apparent on opening ballad Sleepwalking, all charm and intimacy. Make no mistake:

The Idea Of You is a stealthy landmark; a Chemikal Underground record up there with The Delgados’ The Great Eastern or Arab Strap’s Elephant Shoe. James McNair