A decade on from their formation, 90s alt-rock inspired Bull released their debut LP, a jovial and good-humoured coming-of-age narrative reflecting years of blood, sweat and beers.
Once proclaimed as the first York band since Shed Seven to secure a record deal, Bull delightfully capture the feelings of love, lust, loneliness and long days slogging their way to producing Discover Effortless Living. It is an album brimming with charm and is more rewarding listened to in full, providing the perfect soundtrack for a summer road journey.
Like all good coming-of-age tales, there is something indescribably comforting about this record. Beginning fed up in ‘Bedroom Floor,’ encapsulated by the monosyllabic line “frustration, get things done, over-run, not finished,” listeners are submerged into a hopeless slump. The remaining 12 songs on the album endeavour to drag yourself up from this slump, invigorating you to go for a run, eat your five-a-day, and take up a new hobby. It is here where the paradox of the album title is revealed. Rather than lying lazily on your bedroom floor, only through hard work and putting yourself out there can life be Effortless.
Debut single ‘Green’ and the infectious ‘Serious Baby’ embody Bull’s sound: easily digested, jangly alt-rock with harmonies from The Beach Boys that is perhaps more than just a nod to the likes of Pavement, but a fully blown headbutt. Having said that, ‘Serious Baby’ packs an anthemic punch in its’ whirling and shape-shifting outro driven by acoustic guitars straight out of early 90s R.E.M.
The strong middle-section is augmented by ‘Eugene,’ which begins softly before roaring into glistening guitar solos. 90s alt-rock are unashamedly ubiquitous in this LP, but by no means does this ever make it dull. Narrative twists such as ‘Eugene’ transitioning into the grizzlier sounding ‘Eddie’s Cap’ keep listeners on their toes, with distorted vocals and guitars exploding with Pixies and punk sensibilities.
Then ‘Perfect Teeth’ enters the story. This album highlight beautifully captures the embarrassment and nervousness of being attracted to someone in crowded room, with tintinnabulating melodies reflecting someone peeking back and forth at their romantic interest before “staring at my toes.” Lyrically, this is one of their strongest, with metaphors such as “fall into my crater” and “blend into my full void” vividly painting the shy, clumsy character in a situation we have all been in.
‘Find Myself A Job’ and ‘Bonzo Please’ bumble along like our favourite 2000s indie acts, with tendencies of The Coral, Razorlight and early Maccabees with an equally affectionate outcome. Penultimate track ‘Smoke’ continues the long-list of retro 90s references, with a bassline comparable to Nirvana intertwined with something from In The Aeroplane Under The Sea.
Bull are at their finest on ‘In A Jar,’ which bosses The Beatles or The Police-esque tempo changes and intelligent lyricism. In the song that summarises the message of the whole album, it retrospectively navigates through adolescence, scrutinising the know-it-all teenager: “we all think that we are the one, we think we’re special, think we’re fun/I swim around and touch the ground, I think I’m different, I’m profound.” The song is even humorously meta: “I feel it now do you?/The second verse groove,” nonchalantly appreciating how past struggles shape your modern-selves. These past struggles mean there it is a necessity to not shy away from responsibilities in the present: “There are so many things for free, that we all love, just naturally/So eat it up, and drink it in, you won’t regret a single thing.”
Amongst the jolly, tangerine sunset-infused tunes, ‘In A Jar’ delicately conveys a didactic message encouraging you to enjoy the simple things in life and focus on bettering yourself. This hopeful and reflective dialogue chimes nicely with album closer ‘Disco Living,’ an amalgamation of The Jam’s ‘That’s Entertainment’ and The Stone Roses with a hint of silliness: “It’s everyone’s favourite slogan. It’s a ‘Food Coffee Food Cocktails Party!’” It turns out that Discovering Effortless Living is a result of working hard but never forgetting your sense of humour.
Whilst not sonically ground-breaking, Bull’s debut attempt sparkles. With their follow up expected in 2023, let’s hope for more of the same cunning lyricism as in ‘Perfect Smile’ and ‘In A Jar,’ accompanied by some of the more experimental and distorted instrumental moments such as in ‘Serious Baby.’ Two things are for certain, that Discover Effortless Living went seriously under the radar, and that Bull will always provide buoyant tunes that irresistibly put a smile on your face.
Ben Cole
26/1/2023
