This Portsmouth, England four-piece were lumped in with a wave of goth bands that surfaced in the wake of 4AD’s fertile late 80s run, but Cranes sounds more like an unplugged shoegaze band. Alison Shaw’s saccharine vocals are what Slowdive’s Rachel Gosling or Lush’s Miki Berenyi might sound like without the swaths of reverbed guitar washing over them. Unlike a shoegaze record, the focus of these songs rests squarely on Shaw’s unique high-pitched vocals, which eerily foreshadow Grimes’ helium pixie pop incantation on 2012’s Visions. Forever consists mostly of stripped-down, dreamy arrangements that have more in common with early indie acts like The Pixies and Throwing Muses, except for a few brief forays into upbeat postpunk (“Clear”) and full-blown shoegaze (“Jewel,” “Adrift”). Out of print for 24 years and often fetching triple digits online, patient fans will be well rewarded by this deluxe reissue served up by Music On Vinyl, pressed on gold & black colored 180 gram audiophile vinyl, individually numbered and housed in soft-touch matte sleeve. Includes hidden track “Shines Like Stars” (not listed on the back).

• gold & black colored vinyl
• 180g audiophile pressing
• soft-touch matte sleeve
• printed insert
• 1000 copies pressed
• individually numbered

reviewed by mayor of hounslow 06/2017