Communication Problems

Description

At the end of a year deprived of concerts, rock ’n’ roll may never have seemed as moribund as it does today. As life slowly resumes its course, our favorite musicians are also getting back to work. That is the case of Nick Wheeldon, from Sheffield, who never stops leaving his mark on our national scene with his British imprint. Having already released nearly 20 records in 5 years, working within ever more numerous groups (The Jesus Loves Heroin Band, OsNoctàmbulos, 39th & the Nortons, Nick & Alizon, Sex Sux, etc.) and refining, song after song, a delicate blend between the majesty of a Gene Clark and the pure, fragile sensitivity of an Alex Chilton, our national Englishman has this time chosen to release his first album under his own name, Communication Problems. Anyone who has ever met Nick knows, however, how much he likes to surround himself and share musical moments with his company. So for his first solo album, he decided to go record his songs in his friends’ bedrooms. The creative process resembles a group painting in which each track was recorded at the moment it was written. Mixed later by Paul Trigoulet of Bootchy Temples, who gives the whole thing its sonic coherence, the resulting record proves to be a perfect self-portrait of the artist, revealing his raw sensitivity, his warmth, and the love he has for his companions in life and music. More than on his other records, which all shine through their openness to the listener (with their shimmering melodies that reveal a rare and inexhaustible depth of feeling), Communication Problems and its chamber folk give the feeling of truly entering the musician’s intimacy.