As I hinted at when I reviewed “The Stand” single earlier in the year Floors & Walls have a unique sound made up from an eclectic mix of styles but that they run the risk of being dismissed due to the comedy elements of some of their tunes. 

On this full length debut there's the potential that this could still be the case but, thankfully, the more knockabout tunes, of which the aforementioned single “The Stand” and its B-side  “Grimey” are the main offenders, are in the minority. What we have instead is an album that is one of the most original British releases of recent years. 

The band cover a heady mix of styles on the eleven tracks here, the common denominator being a funk rock thread that runs through most of the tunes, but they embellish this blueprint adding elements of reggae and soul coupled with Alex Adams highly flexible vocal delivery to great effect. Indeed Adams' vocal on slow blues “Lip Sync” is particularly heartfelt and Dom McNultys' solo on the same track is also a cracking piece of tasteful and emotional playing. 

Whether telling darker tales of urban gangsters as on “The Snake” or commenting on the boredom of teenagers on “What To Do” the lyrical observations are sharp and detailed, clearly informed by the experiences of the guys in the band and will strike a chord with many people in the same way that the lyrics of  Mike Skinner, Paul Weller or Sam Duckworth all do and musically the band seem to have all the bases covered. 

If Floors & Walls can build on this impressive debut with more tunes of the quality of  “Head Access”, “What To Do”, “Snake” or  “Lip Sync” then they could truly be a massive band. These four tunes especially show the power, ability and breadth of these guys and I, for one, will be watching with keen interest to see where the band go next.

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Track Listing

Head Access
The Stand
What To Do
Grimey
Boracic Man
Tracey
Harder Than It Seems
Snake
The Sket
Lip Sync
Sick Sad Truth

Line Up

Alex Adams – Vocals
Ian Booth – Bass
Dom McNulty – Guitar
Adam Sharp – Drums