Is it me or is there something a bit contrary about new ATA signings The Flying Hats whose excellent new LP The Return Of has just dropped? Firstly, the LP isn’t a ‘return’ of any kind; it’s a debut. There’s also the band name which doesn’t especially evoke reggae or funk. We might also consider the PR Campaign which promised a sound that, “occupies a space somewhere between The Aggrovators and The Meters, under the influence of Lynn Taitt & the Jets, and Fatman Riddim Section.” Did that mean the LP was going to consist of tracks in multiple genres/ sub-genres or offer a set in which all the tracks were a fusion of multiple genres and sub-genres? The album sampler suggested the former while the LP actually provides both the former and the latter. What about the now sold-out physical copy of the LP available for pre-sale on Bandcamp? Cop that and get a free 7 inch to boot! Is the 7 inch good? Hell yeah! It ties for position with the best cuts on the LP! Is it on the LP? No! When will it be available on general release? No idea! Maybe it was just the PR campaign? Maybe the monkey feels mislead by the LP sampler. But let’s try not to hold it against the ‘Hats for make no mistake ‘Return Of’ is a dope album.
This 9-tracker is bookended by two mid-seventies Aggrovators-style reggae cuts: Night Bus and Iron Fist with a third, the uptempo bubbler Forward appearing in the second half. There is also one pure funk cut with nary an ounce of reggae about it in the clattery NOLA-style Bust Up, reminiscent of when Lee Perry tried his hand at funk on The Upsetters’ Popcorn 45. Arguably the band’s tracks that fuse funk and early reggae are even better though. An Autumn Sun sounds like the funkier stuff Lesley Kong was producing in the early to mid-seventies. The remainder take their stylistic cues from the Trojan/ Pama sound of late ’68 to ’71 in terms of the organ toplines and off-beat rhythm guitar while the funkiness comes from the drums and percussion giving the tracks funky fills and/or funky drum breaks that Trojan/Pama didn’t really have. Grafter is a reggae instro which fits right in with The Mohawks’ reggae version of Champ or Leroy Sibbles’ take on Express Yourself for example while the uptempo Power Cut is a Jackie Mittoo-ish dancefloor banger. Finally Strong Fish and Tough Swagger duke it out for funkiest drum break and have whole ton of fun doing it. An absolute pleasure. Can we have the 45 on general release sooner rather than later please? And then another 45? And then another one after that? Can we? Pretty please…
(Out now on ATA Records)