John Davies the genius behind John Mouse is a creative wizard whose music should by now have reached the lives of everyone who has even just a passing interest in pop music, culture and the arts. It was sometime back in the early 2000’s that John first caught my attention via the single Sundrenched Torso / Superman by his band at the time JT Mouse which was released on the legendary Cardiff based label Boobytrap records. It was around the same time that I saw JT Mouse in Cardiff Barfly, forgive me if I can’t remember the exact date but I am sure it was a gig which also featured Tommy and The Chauffer. Although I went to a lot of gigs in the Barfly at the time so may well have confused things. But one thing that instantly grabbed me and stayed with me was the presence of John, how captivating he was, how the songs were quirky indie pop music. I implore you to get a copy of JT Mouse’s only album Clusters and you too will fall in love. Also that gig was my introduction to Stephen Black who went on to release a number of life changing albums under Sweet Baboo and worked with and appeared on recordings by so many greats.
Since that introduction over twenty years ago I have followed John’s journey through his solo albums as John Mouse and The Fashion Weak. Trust me when I say every release has contained songs that will move you, songs that you will relate to, songs that will make you dance, make you cry and make you laugh. Back to The Clubhouse is John’s seventh release as John Mouse is now out there in the world and I want to instantly say this is his best yet, but that is probably recency bias kicking in and I am also mindful not to take anything away from the previous six solo albums. Listening to this album has also made me go back to previous releases and had a lot of fun rediscovering The Death of John Mouse in particular this week.
Back to The Clubhouse is an album of ten perfectly written, arranged and produced pop songs with Stephen Black back on production duties you wouldn’t expect anything else. Ok, my idea of pop music at times might be different to those that create the most played playlists or whatever the streaming services call these lists but I like to think I have a good understanding of music, how it matters to people, how pop music is this thing that is meant to make us feel something, allow us to disappear to another world, to give us lyrics that mean something to us, at times says something about the world we live in, the world we grew up in and something that soundtracks our lives. Back to The Clubhouse does all of that and more.
That’s Just The Way our Love is opens the album and instantly adds weight to my argument for John Mouse being a pop genius. The synths are gorgeous, the vocals are mesmerizing, the song will instantly grab your attention and you will be firmly invested in the rest of the album.
The Tall Slim Member of the Magic Circle will envelope you with uplifting melodies that will make you happy. The lyrics will be sure to make you smile as John sings about flicking through different sections of the free ads. I was instantly taken back to that weekly yellow free ads paper which I used to look through and circle various items. Do the free ads still exist, or is that another thing we have lost to the internet? An Estimate shows that Recruitment Figures are Expected to be Down seems to conjure up the mundane moments of life, having to keep up with appointments, ageing, calorie counting, BMI, missing deliveries, finances, mowing the lawn, upgrading the phone, treating the indoor plants. Siop Fawr is an instrumental that will be sure to have you nodding your head, tapping your feet, drumming your fingers or if you feel brave you may find yourself jumping out of your seat and dancing without a care in the world....go on I dare you.
Back to the Clubhouse again conjures up images of dying institution. These clubhouses have played such a big part in local communities, friendships are formed, families get together, community clubs, sports clubs have a place to bring everyone together. These places have clearly played a big part in John’s life and it is great to see the Clubhouse being referenced in pop songs.
And then their phone goes honestly made me laugh out loud whilst I was walking my dog listening to the album. The observations of people on a train fishing out their phones, talking about work things, family things, Wim Hof, mindfulness and how if you find yourself sat on a train when this happens you may find yourself getting a little irritated. John gives us a great bit of advice if every you find yourself in this situation, get your book out and read aloud.
Twist Base Peacock Chair has a dark, mysterious side “are you the bad babysitter or are you the best babysitter?”. For any avid John Mouse fans there also appears to be a throwback in this song to Robbie Savage from The Death of John Mouse which also references the death of the first Hamster Baldrick from Blackadder. Hot Car has a drum beat that will see this song become firmly embedded in your mind, the lyrics are about those people who try and use their cars to impress by going too fast, windows open and singing along. If that wasn’t enough to make you smile when the song takes inspiration from Where’s My Jumper by The Sultans of Ping there will instantly be an uplift in your mood.
Headbutting the Llama Food Dispenser captures a day out that many children growing up in the 80’s and early 90s would have had. Rubbers from the gift shop, car stickers, penguin keyrings all get a mention here. Although it is not all happy memories, there is clearly a message in this song that the subject was taken on these days out to hide something. Same Retro Clothes brings this perfect album to a perfect end. The vocals are dreamy, and when combined with the synths and all the other sounds we hear you will be left in no doubt that you are in the company of one of the worlds greats. The lyrics are sweet, tender and capture the importance of remaining in love as we get old and change, a timely reminder to love each other “I know I might have a blotchy nose, a dose of gout, same retro clothes / But give me just another chance to sit and sing the last romance with you” Ah John, you old romantic you.
Back to the Clubhouse is an album you simply must have in your life. John Mouse has built up a loyal fanbase over the years who will already no doubt be heavily invested and deeply in love with the album. Whether this will be the moment that catapults John to the wider audience he deserves is yet to be seen. I would love nothing more for everyone all over the world to wake up and appreciate the pop songs of John Mouse, JT Mouse and The Fashion Weak but if that does not happen, I hope John remains in love with what he does, the creativity never dries up and he continues to release music for people to discover.
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