Album Review: Loko Parentis, Dream Longer Than You Sleep

Mixing ingredients from The Clash, Queens of the Stone Age, The Radiators, Nick Cave, Sonic Youth et al, Loko Parentis were born in Cork circa 1981 from various local bits and pieces and driven along to this day by former Hot Press writer Paul
O’Mahony. It’s been a decade and a half since they gave us an album, and this one compiles tracks from their 2009/10 releases. It comes in a cover featuring Emma Starr, the American female footballer who, like the band, also has Dublin on her CV.

Inside you get a scorching torrent of strident guitars with a heavily-armed rhythm section and effects, as with the opener ‘Dream Revolution’ and its brooding vocal. It stomps along like it means business. ‘Remember To Breathe’ has skittery
rhythms, drums that rattle and hum and a voice from somewhere else, and ‘London Underground’ is as short and as unsweet as you’d expect from a bunch of delinquent neighbours. ‘Pornography Blue’ is a lumbering beast with spoken
poetic lyrics, creepy guitar and squally bits, and then along comes ‘Rhythmatism’, frantic from the off, bearing catchy lines and it’s all interrupted by stop-starts that give it real punch.

Dream Longer Than You Sleep is all more than a little Loko with just the right amount of cheesiness added to pull you in and keep you there. You’re left wishing they were a tad more prolific so we don’t need to wait until 2038 for more.

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