‘Ten New Toe-Tappers for Shoplifting & Self-Mutilation’ is a record that we were religiously expecting. It’s been a long time coming, truthfully. Tom Minor has diligently released a few singles in the past year or so, slowly seeding the idea of a second album… it is now here. Following up on the project’s previous LP ‘Eleven Easy Pieces on Anger & Disappointment’, the new record continues Tom’s quest for observant songwriting and tongue-in-cheek storytelling, a striking lyrical character that seeks to decode an increasingly complex reality into bite-sized, digestible pop nuggets.
Packed with twelve tracks, ‘Ten New Toe-Tappers for Shoplifting & Self-Mutilation’ delivers a listening experience that’s increasingly nostalgic and old-school, channelling the Britpop brand in its most classic livery. That said, there’s a certain eclecticism in it, with near-acoustic pieces such as ‘Progressive or Punk’ co-existing with more theatrical, substantial arrangements, the likes of ‘The Manic Phase’, for instance. It’s a keen balance, a constant tension between musical-like drama and a more conventional song structure.
In essence, Tom Minor delivers an almost cinematic opera, a roller-coaster of moods and settings that feels timely, but also retro and nostalgic. It’s an album that would have worked well in 90s Britain, except for the prophetic bits throughout some of the songs. Self-described by Minor as existential indie, ‘Ten New Toe-Tappers for Shoplifting & Self-Mutilation’ highly deserves your time; we suspect that folks around the world will greatly relate to its layered messages.
Recommended! Discover ‘Ten New Toe-Tappers for Shoplifting & Self-Mutilation’ now: