In his review of Andromeda, the third album from Alex Rex which was released just prior to lockdown in February 2020, Thomas Blake opened his album review with a reflection on Alex Neilson’s impressive and prolific working patterns:
“It’s sometimes tempting to speculate on the exact terms of the Faustian pact Alex Neilson has signed in order to get so much work of such quality done in such a short time. Aside from his most famous project – the wonderful folk-rock monster that was the Trembling Bells – he has been a member of Lucky Luke, avant-folk supergroup Black Flowers, and drum-and-sax noisemakers Death Shanties amongst many others. Add to this the countless collaborations with everyone from Jandek and Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy to Isobel Campbell and Mike Heron, his seemingly never-ending tours with the likes of Alasdair Roberts, his recent work with folk superhero Shirley Collins, his liner notes for various friends and colleagues and his occasional reviews for The Wire, and you start to wonder whether Neilson doesn’t experience time in a different way to everybody else.
“In many ways, these apparently frantic working patterns are reflected in the fraught emotional fervour of Neilson’s ever-improving songwriting. But that fervour may have another, much more personal cause. Much of his recent work – including the excellent Otterburn, released less than a year ago – is informed by the death of his brother, and that same energy of sadness and anger finds its way into Andromeda.” He later adds “Andromeda, like its predecessor, is a difficult, brilliant, rewarding snapshot of human turmoil…”
Paradise, his fourth album as Alex Rex set for release on Neolithic Recordings on July 30th is described as a different beast. In many ways, Paradise marks a fresh start for the Glasgow-based polymath. Reunited with ex-Trembling Bells vocalist Lavinia Blackwall for the first time since the band’s demise – Marco Rea (Euros Childs) and regular collaborator Rory Haye make up the rest of the Paradise party, with guest vocalist Kacy Lee Anderson (Kacy & Clayton) blowing a seductive smoke-ring through one track. Paradise introduces us to a new and uncharacteristically playful side of Alex Rex.
We get our first taster from the album with new single ‘What’s Shouted In the Dark (The Dark Shouts Back)’. Many of the songs from this album were written in early lockdown with no opportunity to rehearse, which also happens to be Neilson’s preferred method. “Choosing talented people to record 13 songs that they’ve never heard before with a 3-take limit…” he trills. “…to my mind this captures the songs at a vital tipping point – where parts are being discovered for the first time by musician and listener alike.”. As you can hear…while Neilson’s prolificacy may sound exhausting what is more incredible is that he appears to be brimming with both original and creative ideas.
‘What’s Shouted In The Dark (The Dark Shouts Back)’ according to longtime fan comedian Stewart Lee (who wrote the record’s sleeve notes) ‘echoes both Nick Cave and Nick Lowe in an ouroboros of punk rock preacher gospel blues’.
Alex Neilson says: ‘This is a Ghost-Rock song that brings together references to Ovid and The Shangri-Las. “What’s Shouted In The Dark (The Dark Shouts Back)” is a study in homicidal love from the POV of the killer. It has a flick knife riff, pneumatic drums and themes of self-deception and destruction that impress themselves on the brain like a deranged Mount Rushmore.’
Grab the single on Bandcamp: https://alexrex.bandcamp.com/track/whats-shouted-in-the-dark-the-dark-shouts-back-radio-edit
Paradise is due to be released on July 30th via Neolithic Recordings.