Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *

It is a quandary of our own making, the rush and pursuit of all we can gorge, all we can seize in the belief it can bolster our self-esteem or yield to the seriously complex mantra and conviction of those that imply or force with genuine conviction that all we need to do is lighten up, to rid the acquisition of knowledge at all costs and all the supposed meaningful benefits that go hand in hand with such quests.

Both sides of the argument have their truths, their whispers of derision, and they all come tied in knots as well as inviting, open wrapping, the Parcels of recreation, interests and activity, of seeking answers to what may be; it is though in its individual voice that the truth of their own pursuit, the sincerity of the package they deliver which makes anybody’s ambition undeniably one in which you wish to see open, to whether it contains beauty, fun, or a maniacal taste for absolution.

For Berlin-based Australian band Parcels, it is in the undoing of their bundle of creative joy which leads the listener to a road of endearment, of future enjoyment, as their debut album grows in tangible and esoteric ways. Influenced by the likes of The Beach Boys, Steely Dan and with elements of the master himself, David Bowie, felt pulling discretely at the undercarriage of the band’s sound, but also one that hones in acts such as Pharrell as a guiding hand, Parcels’ self-titled debut delivers in the most unexpected ways, a growl that might be thought of as hunger sated, but is merely the beginning of Cellotape being cut to reveal even greater treasures waiting to be heard.

In tracks such as the Progressively induced Everyroad, the single Lightenup, Closetowhy, IknowhowIfeel, Tieduprightnow and Exotica, the mood is one of discovery, of seeing more to unwrap and distribute beyond our own selfish needs and requirements. The album is such that you understand that what you have is not just one experience waiting to be explored, but like a Matryoshka doll has many layers, each a tale of its own personality but combining as a whole to catch the attention, to be a present in which there will be unquestionably more to come.

A great debut album, a recording of mystery unveiled!

Ian D. Hall