Album of the Week: Colossal Youth (1980)

Young Marble Giants' first, and as far as I know only LP, "Colossal Youth" is an album that I find difficult to define.  I first learned about it because Broadcast's third album, Tender Buttons (2005), drew some comparisons to the cold minimalism of the Young Marble Giants album.  I've been totally digging on this album since I found it though, and at this point it probably makes Young Marble Giants my new favorite band from Wales, taking the coveted position from long time holder Super Furry Animals.
The album is usually labelled as post-punk (I promise next week I won't mention post-punk), and it fits that in a way, but that label is a bit misleading.  It has also a very Indie aesthetic, back in a time when Indie was still actually an abbreviation for Independent.  Kurt Cobain was reportedly a fan, which makes sense because the female singer and guitar is at times very reminiscent of The Raincoats, another favorite band of his.
Instrumentation is very minimal, and very subdued, but the songs are well crafted so as to be very atmospheric and compelling.  Most songs were recorded in single takes, with little to no overdubbing, which the band did in order to maintain the life of the music.  This doesn't mean it is a ruckus, chaotic or live sounding album, but it does mean it is a very intimate sounding album.
The song writing is incredibly concise, and the interaction of the instruments is often as intricate as the interplay we hear on Television's debut album "Marquee Moon."  I love the drum machine when it shows its cheesy lo-fi sounding head, especially the jittery buzz of the title track, and there isn't a drum to be heard anywhere on the album.  I'm also a sucker for cool sounding organs and synth lines, and this album has exactly as much of that as I want.  Try to listen to the organ on "The Man Amplifier" and not smile.  Guitar and bass are never noisy or angry, but full of presence, and they push songs forward with purpose even while being atmospheric and broad.  Potentially the real star, however, is Alison Statton's beautiful dreamy vocal work.  I just have a huge crush on her voice.  If the instruments are atmospheric their purpose is to give her voice somewhere to dance.  Mood's vary and shift throughout each song, and the listener is pulled through the album.  I felt like the music took me by the hand and I didn't want to let go until the last track had finished.
I can only account for the original 15 tracks, but there are also several versions of the album that have been released since the original came out in 1980 that add extra material.  There is at least one addition that has also taken all of their songs from EP's and compliation albums and such, effectively comprising all of Young Marble Giants' music.  I'm told this is the version to listen to, but I just haven't gotten around to it yet.
All I can say is that I really fell in love with this album.  It is a soft spoken set of songs, but each song is crafted with such purpose and performed with meticulous care that it is a very seductive and powerful album.  If it is to be called post-punk, one should not expect any of the punk anger, or sloppy song structures that defined that genre and gave it such power.  However this album does have the production of a punk album, giving the album presence, as if you were right there with them.  It is also very much an album of youth seeking to find their place in a sub culture, and isn't that what punk is really about?
With "Colossal Youth" Young Marble Giants have created an enjoyable, unique and entirely beguiling album.  And that's what I've been digging this week.