feature photo: Jay Gilbert
Threesome Vol. 1 is ‘just’ a four-song EP, but one that’s been eagerly awaited by some for about a quarter century. The Lickerish Quartet is a trio about to release their first music, but with a bit of ancient history between them.
Roger Joseph Manning Jr., Eric Dover, Tim Smith were all once in a band called Jellyfish, which during its short existence in the early 90s, seemed ripe to bust out as the Next Big Classic Rock Band. But tastes of the day shifted away from the melodic and artful to the rough and angst-filled, and the grunge gods Nirvana became that Next Big Rock Band instead. After Jellyfish was laid to waste in the aftermath, keyboardist/singer Manning paired with guitarist/singer Dover and formed Imperial Drag.
They made one, self-titled album from 1996 that moved the Jellyfish sound closer to garage rock, but that didn’t catch on, either, and they each went to pursue their music careers mostly in support of better-known acts like Beck and Alice Cooper. Around the same time, Smith’s band with Rob Aldridge, the Umajets, was winding down. This was the end of the story for about twenty years.
Then in 2017, Manning reached out to the ex-Jellyfish bass player Smith and then Dover about forming a musical partnership — dubbed the Lickerish Quartet — that at first was just knocking around musical ideas in the pop-rock vein and seeing where that led them.
With former Jellyfish frontman Andy Sturmer not in the picture this time, the biggest shoes to fill were going to come from the songwriting department, as Sturmer had collaborated with Manning for most of Jellyfish’s material. Dover and Smith has stepped in impressively to fill the void. Says Manning, “While touring with Jellyfish, it was pretty clear to me that both Eric and Tim had plenty to say as writers in their own right,” and everyone has had a hand in shaping TLQ’s songs.
Songs eventually led to recordings and they’ve already recorded twelve — a whole album’s worth — of original material with Jeremy Stacey (King Crimson, Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds, Ryan Adams and Steven Wilson) providing the drums. Threesome Vol. 1 is just a third of what’s been put in the can and will be followed by Vol. 2 and Vol. 3 if Vol. 1 gets enough love.
Dover in particular is pretty gifted at coming up with lyrics, no more apparent than in the cunning wordplay that drives “Fadoodle.” With echoes of Roxy Music’s “Virginia Plain,” “Fadoodle,” is British glam rock at its most British, with downright silly lyrics which amount to high-falutin’ ways to beg for a banging. But it’s chock full of cleverness and Smith’s wiry bass line gives it a groove that even the best of that genre was often lacking.
Luxuriant harmony vocals are fussed over here just as it was for that older band, from the endlessly tracked voices that open up “Bluebird’s Blues” to the intricately layered ones that caress “There Is A Magic Number” on the last chorus. That former song sprung from an old musical idea by Manning, a folk-based number with Beatle-esque charisma. The latter tune came from Smith, a dreamy, country-rock ballad not unlike America or The Eagles when they were on their game.
And then there’s the big opus they trotted out two months early, “Lighthouse Spaceship”. It’s got psychedelic bombast, Queen-sized harmonies and more hooks than a plug lure.
The legend of Jellyfish has grown over the years and that’s become a hell of a legacy to live up to. With every member having chops, pipes and creative flair, Threesome Vol. 1 introduces the Lickerish Quartet as that legacy’s rightful successor. Could this be another Spilt Milk split in three parts? Based on Act I, it’s shaping up that way.
Threesome Vol. 1 is planned for release on May 15, 2020 by Label Logic and distributed by Ingrooves.
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