CocknBullKid – Adulthood
Moshi Moshi / Island
In an age when music from East London consists primarily of DIY guitar pillage and minimalist bleepcore, Hackney bastion Anita Blay has turned the entire scene on its head by releasing a debut that falls somewhere between Diana Ross, Lily Allen and a collection of nursery rhymes.
Some might think that refreshing, still more will find it annoying. In reality, CocknBullKid provides a resolutely summertime, unpretentious romp through disco pop sounds. Blay’s vocals are soulful yet childlike, reflected in opener ‘Adulthood’, in which the 25-year-old asks “when will it begin?”. The Fisher Price keyboards are almost Butlins redcoat-like at times, disappointingly saccharine considering the musical heavyweights who collaborated on the album — members of Metronomy, Peter, Bjorn and John and, umm, All Saints’ Shaznay Lewis all threw their tuppence-worth into the project.
The production skills of Marina And The Diamonds knob-twiddler Liam Howe make this far from one-dimensional teenage magazine fodder, though it’s Blay’s velvety and natural vocals that prove the sturdy lynchpin from which Adulthood hangs. But with no standout tracks, it’s difficult to imagine who would actually listen to an album that’s so mainstream pop, yet somehow tinged with indie credentials — Blay made an appearance on Later… With Jools Holland a few years back, then signed to Island Records.
Adulthood is about as far away from serious, chin-stroking musicianship as possible, and while this may be the album’s entire raison d’être, on the flipside, at times it’s about as appealing as a Steps power workout soundtrack. Natalie Hardwick
