Creeping Nobodies

The five members of Toronto’s Creeping Nobodies came together just over a year ago for the sake of a one-off tribute gig honouring the Fall. As evidenced by the jaggedly melodic material on this solid debut CD, there’s still a little Mark E. Smith within the ranks, but in spirit more so than stylistic derivation. The disc is primarily instrumental, although vocalist Derek Westerholm (formerly of Parts Unknown) does chime in on several tracks. His lyrical bits are unfailingly brief, though, and mantra-like in their delivery, as if intended as merely another instrument in the sonic melange. Not many bands can pull off this sort of balance of creative, irreverent experimentalism and catchy songwriting. There are also some shades of Wire here but without any discernable outlines. Don’t be too put off by the seemingly short program, since the disc’s sixth and final track, a vaguely psychedelic freak-out number appropriately titled "The Long Creep-Out,” comes up just shy of the 17-minute mark. And you can almost dance to it, too.