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By no means revolutionary, the art of the ‘side-project’ has over the years been used to amicably settle and acrimoniously experiment with differences of musical opinion as well of course (means and ego allowing) to simply masturbate in public.
Margins’ intended use depends on your level of cynicism but fear not Maximo Park fans according to Paul Smith his first solo release isn’t like “George Michael leaving Wham!” and neither thank goodness will it persuade you to don a bowler hat and bounce around like a hedonistic twat.
Written, recorded and produced over four-years with friend Andrew Hodson (The Matinee Orchestra/Warm Digits) Margins favours the stripped back introspection of opening track ‘North Atlantic Drift’ to that of The Park’s trademark anthemics.
With Smith on guitar, Hodson on drums and Field Music’s David Brewis recruited to bass, the instrumentals of ‘The Crush And The Shatter’, ‘This Heat’ and ‘While You’re In The Bath’ (recorded in a single take by Peter Brewis) at times feel like late but intuitive additions to a fragmented scribble of intimate, clunky and abrupt thoughts.
More multidimensional artist than generic frontman Smith’s contrasting excursions reflect snapshot genres where the pop sensibilities of ‘Strange Fiction’ and ‘I Drew You Sleeping’ fleetingly support the downcast discourses of ‘Improvement / Dénouement’, ‘I Wonder If’ and ‘Alone, I Would’ve Dropped’.
However, despite an abundance of reverb, fragility and at times what appears to be restraint, the thought process of experimentation rarely veers far from the familiar (ish) ‘Dare Not Dive’ side of the tracks in part fulfilling expectation through compromise.
Expectations aside and with a book of photography entitled ‘Thinking In Pictures’ set to coincide with its release, ‘Margins’ in spite of its somewhat inevitable depreciation, is far less vanity project than lyrical extension of Paul Smith’s unfolding personality. But its existence begs the question would it have actually merited a release if Paul Smith weren’t in charge of the label that released it?
Probably.
