Album: Exclamation At Asterisk Hash
Artists: Ben Marwood, Jim Lockey, Oxygen Thief
Label: Broken Tail Records
Release date: 13th July 2009
Split albums are a minefield. If done poorly, you end up with something that sounds disjointed, that fails to hold the listener’s attention. If you get the balance right, however, you can create something very special. Exclamation At Asterisk Hash (perhaps a better rendering than !@*#) does it right. A collaboration between Ben Marwood, Jim Lockey, and Barry Dolan (who performs under the moniker Oxygen Thief), Exclamation At Asterisk Hash is a critical challenge because there is very little that ties the three musicians together. They are difficult to compare and impossible to mistake.
Each has an attitude and style that is entirely unique: self-proclaimed ‘folk-punk troubadour’ Lockey is poetic and passionate, and Marwood continues to refine his blend of gentle melodies and acerbic wit. Oxygen Thief, meanwhile, eschews subtlety in favour of raw, abrasive, intensely enjoyable acoustic punk. There are no pretensions here; each does what they do best, and leaves it at that.
The format (three songs from each artist interspersed with one another) gave the trio an opportunity to select only their best work and create a carefully-curated collection entirely free of filler. The album’s ebb and flow, a lively mash-up of the three styles, is a pleasure to listen to: Marwood’s elegant “I Will Breathe You In” transitions almost seamlessly into Lockey’s enchanting ballad “The Boat Song”, which first fades, and then explodes into the frenetic splendour of Oxygen Thief’s “Too Many Trees”. It works flawlessly, offering cohesion where you might expect a clash.
As a critic, I should at least try to be balanced and objective, but to search for flaws in an album as immensely enjoyable as Exclamation At Asterisk Hash would be an insult. Each track stands tall in the knowledge that it deserves to be on the record, and proudly bears the scars of the battle it fought to make it there. In the crowded field of British singer-songwriters, Exclamation At Asterisk Hash is a fitting showcase of three rare talents.
I can’t be unequivocal enough, reader: this is a fucking excellent album. Go forth and check it out. You won’t be disappointed.
Our Arbitrary Numerical Verdict:
Exclamation At Asterisk Hash is released on Broken Tail Records on Monday, and is available from all the usual haunts.
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Marcus Kernohan is the founder and editor-in-chief of Stereokill.net. Email him at 
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