Schmotime

The second album from London's Absentee. Led by singer/guitarist Dan Michaelson. Recorded at Premises Studios in Bethnal Green, between tours and overseen by uber fabo producer James Ford (Mystery Jets, Arctic Monkeys, Testicles etc.), the album reflects the group's newfound stability and confidence gained from spending way too much time together. The songs are both lyrically and musically more to the point than their past recordings, and their wondering guitar lines and humorous metaphors are now matched with instant melodies and acute observation. The result is a more accessible yet no less exciting record. Drawing inspiration from a list of artists as diverse as, Lou Reed, Leonard Cohen, Pavement, Super Furries and Bob Dylan, Absentee focus on the incompatibly of people jarred with the inevitability of their eventual compromise and demise. "Absentee make each hair on the back of your neck shiver like leaves in the wind"--NME