Clinic
Internal Wrangler
Domino Recording Co.

Though it's not the revelation Clinic's previous singles might have suggested, the Liverpool-based group's 14-track debut album is no disappointment.

Launching from somewhere between The Velvet Underground, Suicide and Wire, Clinic has honed an interesting sound. Its rhythm section is more buzz than bounce, and at times, as on the single "The Return of Evil Bill," it sounds deliciously frenetic. At other times, the group settles for subtle, Violent Femmes-style minimalism.

Instrumental tracks pepper the album, often besting the vocal songs. "Voodoo Wop," starts with congas, adding wasps, drums and keyboards before disintegrating into ocean sounds and "Riders on the Storm" keyboards. Another instrumental, "DJ Shangri-La," samples church bells, seagulls and a spooky organ, during its too short one-minute duration.

Like the folks in Wire and Suicide, the members of Clinic aren't musicians, and the group's by-any-means-necessary approach to songwriting makes for interesting results. Mouth percussion ("The Second Line"), surf-guitar effects ("Internal Wrangler"), and sounds (not unlike Cocteau Twins' Liz Fraser) for lyrics.

For example:

"Up and up, er, oh mi oh my/mee mi dizzi ni/momma momma, don't be goze," from "T.K."

"I want to brum pop woo ho hoo/And all the vegetables that serve as obstacles /You see a moonbeam on the hill," from "Internal Wrangler."

Sometimes sounds work better than words. That's Clinic in a nutshell; it emphasizes flow more than specific song structures. That said, Internal Wrangler flows very well. "Earth Angel" is a nice companion to "Voodoo Wop," and "Distortions," the album's best piece follows "DJ Shangri-La," even echoing The Velvet Underground's "Candy Says," for good measure.

At 31 minutes, Internal Wrangler seems rushed. Maybe my expectations were just too high, but a 50-minute, 20-something track debut, a la Wire's Pink Flag, would have been a little more satisfying.

— Aaron Tassano (aaronaroundthecorner@yahoo.com)