![\"image\"](\"https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/10\/tumblr_inline_muaq0fJuOw1qztcot.jpg\" "\\"\\"")
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I first saw Chris T-T <\/strong>in 2009, supporting Frank Turner at Union Chapel. He was singing a ballad called \u2018Ankles\u2019<\/em>, which was about breaking a woman\u2019s ankles to stop her leaving. It\u2019s safe to say I expected something equally offbeat from Chris T-T & The Hoodrats<\/strong> latest release.<\/p>\n I\u2019ve listened to this album twice-a-day for a week and I still can\u2019t decide if I like it or am indifferent to \u2018The Bear\u2019<\/em>. Sounding like a mix of Art Brut, Andrew Jackson Jihad and a Blur album, \u2018The Bear\u2019<\/em> is messy and chaotic with the occasional lyrical gem thrown in.<\/p>\n Recorded in just 3 or 4 takes, this is not an album for those who favour slick production; it\u2019s rambling and raw with more pop culture references than an episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Opening with \u20181995<\/em>\u2019, which over five minutes, morphs from an almost spoken word piece to a faster-paced Britpop inspired song. Chris T-T\u2019s<\/strong> singing style is similar to Art Brut, and if you don\u2019t relish spoken-more-than-sang vocals, this is not the album for you. At times jarring, at times emotive, it somehow blends in well with the chaotic backing band.<\/p>\n The majority of the album plays like a 90\u2019s throwback littered with modern celebrity and cultural namedrops. At times these raise a smile, with typical lines like \u201ceverything in this house that can be priced, is up on eBay\u201d<\/em>, but after ten tracks full of references to Lenny Henry and being an antidisestablishmentarian, it gets a bit samey. Chris T-T<\/strong> also favours the ridiculous extended metaphor and the album is filled with stuff like, \u201cI\u2019m wired as a box of wires with the fuse on fire\u201d<\/em>. At times it all seems a bit forced.<\/p>\n The highlights of this album are in the latter half, such as \u2018Bury Me With a Scarab\u2019<\/em> a surprisingly fun song about different death rituals across the world and returning from the grave. The standout track is \u2018Jesus Christ\u2019<\/em>, an Andrew Jackon Jihad-esque number about Christianity with brilliant lines such as, \u201cfear, secrets, abusing kids, they\u2019ve got the morals of a dustbin lid\u201d<\/em> and \u201cJesus never said anything about the sex or the gays or any of that shit\u201d<\/em>. It shows that when on form, Chris T-T<\/strong> is capable of fun, to the point lyrics.<\/p>\n Overall this is a hit and miss album, while there are moments of greatness it feels a little too contrived and a little too forced. Chris T-T & The Hoodrats<\/strong> will undoubtedly be great fun to see live, but \u2018The Bear\u2019<\/em>s parts never really gel together, instead feeling like two EP\u2019s combined into an album. If you\u2019re normally a fan of the\u00a0Xtra Mile<\/strong> roster give it a go, otherwise this is not an essential listen.<\/p>\n 3\/5<\/p>\n \u2019The Bear\u2019<\/em> by Chris T-T & The Hoodrats<\/strong> is out now on Xtra Mile Recordings<\/strong>.<\/p>\n Chris T-T & The Hoodrats<\/strong> links: Website<\/a>||Twitter<\/a>|Bandcamp<\/a><\/p>\n Words by Jay Sullivan<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" I first saw Chris T-T in 2009, supporting Frank Turner at Union Chapel. He was singing a ballad called \u2018Ankles\u2019, which was about breaking a woman\u2019s ankles to stop her leaving. It\u2019s safe to say I expected something equally offbeat from Chris T-T & The Hoodrats latest release. I\u2019ve listened to this album twice-a-day for […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":26514,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[15,8181],"tags":[5879,11657,10473,10927,2736],"class_list":["post-26513","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-album-reviews","category-post","tag-album-reviews","tag-chris-t-t","tag-chris-t-t-the-hoodrats","tag-the-bear","tag-xtra-mile-records"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n