Anyone fed up with the staid nature of contemporary Irish rock should welcome Channel One’s debut album. The Dublin outfit often eschew vocals altogether, conjuring cinematic soundscapes using synths and electro-beats. The results are frequently compelling.
The enormous ‘Three Stars’ winks in the direction of Ultravox whilst there’s a Tubular Bells aspect to the hypnotic ‘Okinawa’. But Channel One can do subtlety too, as is evidenced in the finely wrought ‘Retrace’ and ‘Lakes’. ‘Not For The Last Time’ gets a little too murky here and there but ‘Roads’ is rather more upbeat and reassuring, with treated voices adding depth to its luxuriant musical scaffolding. Time to switch on to Channel One...