Ambulance Ltd – 'Ambulance Ltd' (TVT) Released 07/03/05

 

New York four-piece Ambulance Ltd have been making waves in the States with their eponymous debut album, garnering fans as high profile as Lou Reed and warranted critical acclaim. Their subtle and personable tunes diverge from the tight and spiky scene you typically imagine to come out of New York background, rather, possessing a more loose and breezy West Coast feeling.      

 

'Yoga Means Union' is unrestrained instrumental joy climaxing with a rousing Top Gun-esque crescendo; rejuvenating and invigorating and very unlike my experiences of yoga where the only union I’ve ever experienced is my arse with the floor when the teacher tried to make us do headstands in the first lesson. It was a beginners’ class the fucking lunatic! From the spotlessness of 'Yoga Means Union' we are plunged into dead-pan arrogance in 'Primitive (The Way I Treat You)', with the comedy-named Marcus Congleton’s cool vocals rolling through the song like an air-conditioned Greyhound coach through a scorched cactus-spotted desert.  The breezy and endearingly wobbly 'Anecdote' is as personal as McCartney at his sweetest and most stripped-back. Simple and charming it marks a move from Nevada plains to good ol’ skiffly Liverpool. First single 'Heavy Lifting' with its breezy sun-kissed sheen and gentle Californian rhythms demonstrates why Ambulance Ltd Have been chosen to soundtrack cult teen show The OC. 'Stay Tuned' has a Brendan Benson / Detroit twang in its intimacy and the beautifully sweet bonus track, 'Straight A’s', is gorgeous in its simplicity

 

Ambulance Ltd’s first album is a meticulously plotted affair which swoops from the warm and confessional, to expansive, melodic rock and distanced cynicism. More of a slow-burner than a ball-grabber – you slowly start to realise what an immaculate conception this album is - everything is painstakingly put into place, down to the slightest distorted guitar note and ragged breath. Throughout the band rely on the purity of Congleton’s voice rather than any heavy musical embellishment. In its own quiet way, it’s a shit-hot listen.