Barker is Back !!
This may be against company policy but Hey name me a pirate who didn’t digress when they could? The only excuse
to be offered for breaking from reviewing local acts is because …. The Barker is Back !!
However this time under the guise, and in, The Heartache State. Indeed as I could not keep my paws from exploring the inside sleeve, I discovered lyrics that set you up for a State of Longing Heartache. Dark, down beat and down trodden
Nick lays it out with his gritty view of life. One of which most of us can claim at passing through at some point.
Such is Life My Friend, the words rebound but always bring you back from the brink with a wink and a nod.
Putting on the CD it came as pleasant, not a word Barker may like being associated with, but yes a pleasant surprise to find that upbeat melody surrounds the darkness and lifts it up on high. Hallelujah Brothers and Sisters !!
The upbeat, spring along, melody of the opening chords show Nick Barker, of The Heartache State, is indeed “Back in the Game”. The oxymoron of swirling guitar of James Garner, bounce along beat, emotional lyrics indeed took me back t
o the days of Blue Skies on a Grey Street in St. Kilda.
“No Good Alone” maintains the rhythm and is quintessential Barker. It seems The Heartache State fits him like a glove
as the grooves move along, the pace being set and maintained by Venom on stix and drum roll flix.
The tempo is brought down a notch by “Minimum Wage” but it’s so laid back that it just floats like a honey drop twist of goodness inhaled.
Next up “The Broken H” could be conceived as a clear play that Broken Hearts are indeed behind the force of being
broken by H. This is one up for discussions long into the night of blues, booze and bad news. Again trade mark sing along chorus lines of sweetness could be a cover for the subject matter.
The 12 string playing of Michael Hubbard is delightful interlude that features heart picking vocals that surround
“April 30”.
The boys then rock back with a Reptiles / Stones influence swagger that gets you up and moving. Even the
neighbourhood residents were seen to be dancing in the shadows when the slide kicks in. “Bones of My Heart” is
a winner.
The bounce and rumble of “Clockstar” keeps the mood up and time timeless as breezy bass rhythm that does compare to Jovi-esque melody at it’s best.
The pace drops slightly with the beautiful melody and sing along chorus of “SSRI”. This gem contains the unforgettable line “And I ain’t met chemical that’s let me down”. Eloquent, soft and bespoken thoughts of generations gone and generations to come.
Once again the groove kicks in on the next track as slide, soaring vocals, dutiful bass and rolling drums pick you up,
move you around but then drops you off on your arse. The ending leaves you feeling like you’ve just been shown to
the door by a loving whore. Next One Please !!
And like the serious come down that follows “I’m tired of my rock’n’roll” opens “Hipster Kryptonite”. Is this a back lash
to the embodiment of postmodernism as a spent force, revealing what happens when pastiche and irony exhaust
themselves as aesthetics? One can only wonder? Or is this Mr Barker saying he’s maintained true to his roots of rock enforced melodies while generations drift on by in flashes of brightly back commercial success with paying their dues?
And so The Heartache State leaves you not wondering, but in wonder. Yes the world can rejoice, join hands and shout ‘Praise Be I Have Seen The Light’!!
But just when you think it’s safe you discover it’s the rock’n’roll train wreck of The Heartache State about to steamroller
you, live you bleeding, crying and DYING FOR MORE!!
Yes! , The Barker is Back !! It’s a Rock ‘N’ Roll Heart Attack !!