Go Kart Mozart

Go Kart Mozart represents the further adventures of Birmingham, England, native Lawrence Hayward. He spent the '70s and '80s fronting the atmospheric guitar pop band Felt, who drew much inspiration from Television, releasing albums in the '90s under the Denim moniker. Go Kart Mozart continues the pseudo-novelty direction of the latter, who produced a bubblegum strain of '70s glam rock that often belied the biting social commentary of their lyrics. With Go Kart Mozart, a true solo project, the name adequately evokes the project's pull between serious artistry and childish fun. 2000's Instant Wigwam and Igloo Mixture featured such not-quite ironic tracks as "Hip Op," which is about the Queen's hip surgery; "Um Bongo," which is named after a British soft drink but comments on the genocide in Rwanda; and a synth ditty about murdering a girl called "Depleted Soul." Consider this another inscrutable twist in the long career of Lawrence Hayward, who has inspired such luminaries in their own right as Belle and Sebastian (Stuart Murdoch is a professed Felt obsessive) and Pulp (who draws obvious influence from Denim). After a five year wait during which Lawrence oversaw the re-release of the entire Felt catalogue and began work on various projects, Go Kart Mozart's second album finally saw release. The album again was split between novelty and commentary and as a bonus for fans of Denim, contained tracks from the shelved third album titled Denim Take Over.