Pull Tiger Tail - Mary Jane

Whatever happened to Pull Tiger Tail? They appeared the other year with the fantastic ‘Animator’, they played some blinding live sets, were lauded by many, released a couple more great songs… and then disappeared. So, with the announcement of this new single, predictably, there has been a lot of excitement in PTT’s fanbase.

Unfortunately, it doesn’t seem the wait has been worth it. ‘Mary Jane’ seems to be following directly from the disappointing ‘Hurricanes’ and lacks all the energy and tempo of their early singles whilst seemingly trying to expand. Their sound, in the process of becoming bigger has also become, well, less interesting. Marcus’ distinctive vocals don’t carry well when transferred into this larger sound, the falsetto tones that worked so well before seem dwarfed by the tune. With the use of echo-heavy vocals and backing vocals, it all sounds a little (gulp) U2, and this just wasn’t what we thought Pull Tiger Tail would become.

Frankly it all sounds a little over produced, and sounds nothing alike to how they started out. There’s no doubt that it is a catchy tune, and what the chorus lyrics lack in imagination (‘I fell in love with Mary Jane/I used to take her by the hand and drive her round the town’), the tune might make up for by working its way into your head. The fact is, this is not a bad song, but fans of the band (and this reviewer is one) could well feel a little betrayed by it, especially after the long wait. So let’s ask again, whatever happened to Pull Tiger Tail?