Karma County

Thanks to everyone who supported us on our brief tour of HEADLAND, our double disc retrospective collection. We had a great time and it was truly life affirming to catch up with our consistent supporters. We love you and hope to have the opportunity to do it again some time soon. Keep the home fires burning!!! New photos and youtube uploaded now.



Headland

Released 7 October, 2008



CDs and high quality MP3’s

available now from VITAMIN RECORDS



Karma County – Headland REVIEW

One and a half decades, five albums and a couple of ARIAs to boot: the lush Australian sound of Karma county is still alive and well and beautifully captured in the two-CD collection Headland. Lead by the distinctive vocals of "Eddie everywhere" Brendan Gallagher (who also happens to pluck a mean guitar), Michael Galeazzi on bass and percussionist Stuart Eadie, the County has cut an exotic swathe through the sonic landscape both here and abroad. All this beginning at a time when grunge, post-punk, electronica and other genres have ebbed and flowed: the County have remained fiercely independent, artistically, true to their roots producing an earthy, raw, emotive and thoughtful style of music.



Disc one opens with the beautiful Postcard from their debut album /i>Last Stop Heavenly Heights. This disc is a perfect blend of tracks with the five albums gaining pretty much equal distribution across the board. There is no doubt that Secret Country from Into The Land Of Promise is a classic track and for mine ranks up there with The Triffid's Wide Open Road of The Church's Under The Milky Way, it also features the lush tones of Jimmy Little (Gallagher was the mastermind behind the success of Little's Messenger album). There certainly aren't any fillers here and other highlights are Good Things Come To Me Now (1998's Olana), Where could I Go To But Home and the title track from Happy Birthday Dear Customer (2001) and the tale of Dexter & Sinistra featuring actor Brian Brown off the Pacifico album. The second disc is predominately rarities, remixes, a couple of live recordings and the added bonus of two new tracks, one being the cover version of Yazoo's Only You, which is a wonderful interpretation of a great Vince Clarke-penned song. The other cover is The Reels' Kitchen Man and and the county treatment stamped all over it - Dave Mason would be chuffed.



With 36 tracks over the two-disc set there is something for everyone. Those never having had the pleasure of hearing Karma County should jump ath this release as it simply showcases thus uber-talented Australian outfit. For existing fans the second disc provides further proof of how consistently good the output from the County has been over a creer that we trust is far from over and wait expectantly for new material if newbie The Feeling is any indication.



Reviewed by The Boomeister

Inpress Issue 1037

17 September 2008