sees Clinic — formed by Ade Blackburn and Jonathan Hartley — push forward into more surreal territory within pop and acid-punk, with lead single "You and I" offering the first taster of the collection of songs. The track is partly a commentary on the music business, with their sound dipping into more experimental territory.

“Something we’ve got into more recently is exotica,” explains Blackburn, “especially the colourful percussion. People like Martin Denny and Les Baxter. Some of that stuff is amazing. For what was often considered easy listening music, it has some very strange undercurrents. We’ve also been listening to dub reggae and things like Cabaret Voltaire. And a lot of early rock‘n’roll, for that immediacy. For many of these songs, we wanted an extra sense of propulsion, so we’d sometimes take out a whole verse to push it along.”

Nearly thirty years since they first formed as a quartet, Blackburn and Hartley's chemistry remains. "Hartley was always interested in electronics and drum machines, even as a teenager," says Blackburn. "He's into rhythms, whereas I was always into songs and melodies. I think that's why Clinic works so well."

"We've always run in the opposite direction to what's happening," he adds. "So if anything gets too close to sounding like something else, then we'll take a different route."

artwork

tracklist

"Wild In The Streets"
"Model Citizen"
"Back to Nature"
"You and I"
"Hypnotised"
"The Gardener"
"Mouse Trap"
"Energies"
"(It Was) Heaven"
"The Time Has Come"
"Well Wisher"
"It's a Pleasure"