Jay Reatard - The Matador Singles 08

For those of you already aware of the Reatards and Jay’s other projects this bundle wont carry any great surprises. When you are as prolific as he is it might be seen as unfair to expect mind-boggling amounts of progression between each new outing. For those of you not too familiar with the multitude of guises that Reatard (real name Jay Lindsey) works under this is a bundle of 3 minute garage punk records that hold their roots firmly at the start of this century, short sharp tracks full of tub-thumping percussion, screeching vocals with a repetitive but catchy refrain sure to pop up at some point in every song.

While the lyrics occasionally sit on the twee side of slightly obvious there is more than enough energy to keep everyone tangled up for the full length of this record and while his former contemporaries have faded this body of work actually sounds quite fresh considering the current indie-pop musical landscape.

Thanks to the marketing campaign and limited print of these 45s, which decreased with each new release, the hype surrounding Reatard is at an all-time high and cult status is well within his reach. How long he can keep this up remains to be seen. A one man version of the Ramones is a very nice idea but in reality it could get a bit tedious should he not become acquainted with a new project in the near future. For now though these will do just fine and the right from the opening buzz of ‘See-Saw’, which sounds like a Britpop standard on fast forward, there is no escaping the intrigue that accompanies this noise and you can’t help but let go. The chorus sets the tone early on crooning the album’s manifesto “There is really nothing to it / and that is all I know”.

As a chronological collection of singles it manages not to fall into the trap of shoving all the good stuff at the beginning, relentless in its attack on your ears not once does this compilation wane.