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14 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Quiet Scottish Popsters Booze Thier way Through The World, May 22, 2003
ARAB STRAP
'MONDAY AT THE HUG & PINT"It would be bad form to write off Arab Strap as just
another musical export in the so-called Scottish
invasion. Like their cohorts, MOGWAI and BELLE &
SEBASTIAN, they write lyrical, melody charged pop
songs with tongue firmly in cheek. Although the Straps
are a bit more mischievous. Malcolm Middleton and Aiden Moffat are crafty buggers.
After seven years they are misanthropic storytellers
with no shame. Many of their lyrics center around the world of relationships, good bad and disastrous. They
also write about drug hazes, glom and Scottish
locales. They throw it all at you, cellos, bagpipes, distorted
beats, doors slamming and floods of tears. This is
especially true with their new CD, "Monday At The Hug
& Pint." named after a pub in their native Falkirk,
the album melds all of these things into a well
crafted, but sometimes non-contiguous album. The album attempts to create the pub feeling. You
enter on a euphoria, then you drink, think, drink,
mingle, talk, mingle and drink some more. Somewhere
along the line you're at the barstool being sad and
miserable, but somehow reveling in it all. Arab Strap
have made a record that is lyrically frank. They are
honest and on point. However after a few rounds, they
begin to spiral into sadness and decay as they banter
on about bastards and evil women. "The Shy Retirer" encapsulates the euphoria. it is a
brilliant beginning to the album. It features a beat
that slashes calmly along, melded with great hooks and
lyrics. "Meanwhile At The Bar, A drunkard Muses," is
tinged with darkness. It has dark lyrics and weeping
melodies as a backdrop."There are rules to follow,
just a big black gaping hollow." That about sums up
the dreariness here. "Loch Leven" is introduced by a
nicely distorted bagpipe solo. the song itself is a
homage to the Loch in Falkirk draped in the hopes and
aspirations of dealing with somebody. "Flirt" is also
one of the album's best moments. Arab Strap are not for everyone. You do not necessarily need h to be down on your luck to really appreciate them. But they tend to wallow in sadness. However, when they break out of it, it is
joyous. "Hug & Pint," offers sentimentality, irony,
melancholy and hope amidst all of its muddled sounds
and diverse melodies. Arab Strap never craft the same song twice. They
have made another record with no rules or boundaries.
They are captivating because they dont care. they are
relevent because they simply wear emotions on their
sleeves. Stylistically they have always been all over
the place. this is OK though because they craft
exhilarating pop. They devise great songs out of
twisted lives and bitterness. This is a drunken record. Driven by the primal sadness
that makes one drink. This is a trip to the pub that
expounds, but offers no solutions. This is great music
for going off the rails. This also is a record that is honest, genuine and
real. Arab Strap are heartfelt songsters with an
uncanny knack for making great hooks. This most
evident with "Glue" and "Act Of War," two really solid
tracks that, along with "The Shy Retirer" may be the
best on the record. Arab Strap are not on the commercial radar of popular
music. Arab Strap have perfected the art of balladeering. Meaning they tell great storeis of the world. On this album, most of these stories are tinged with loss, sadness despair and sorrow. Their booze infested lyrics embrace honesty. But if you want an album about meeting people, being drunk, finding yourself and sussing out the
whole mess, this is for you.
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by Arab Strap 
