The Nature Strip branches out

 By Henry Lipput

When Australia’s The Nature Strip released their Past Pacific EP in 2018 there was this note on the Bandcamp page: “The last Nature Strip record for the time being.”

The band, led by songwriters Pete Marley and John Encarnacao, went on hiatus. But Marley and Encarnacao found other outlets for their music: Marley, who has also plays bass for the terrific Australian band Fallon Cush, created Marveline with some friends. Encarnacao hooked up with producer David Carter and, joined by students or ex-students of the Tasmania Conservatorium, brought back Warmer, a unit he led before becoming part of The Nature Strip.

Warmer

Wooden Box With Strings (Bandcamp) is a remarkable album with (mostly) acoustic instruments and wonderful arrangements. It’s full of melody and noise (think of George Harrison’s “Long Long Long” from The Beatles with that strange ending). Most of the time the noises are produced by instruments making a cacophony of sounds and other times, well, there’s a credit for “preparation of piano for ‘Wooden Box’ and gathering of percussive debris for ‘Cry For The Moon‘.”

The title track is an example of how songs on the album start slowly and then build: acoustic guitar then a spooky-sounding banjo, strings, and upright bass. It all gets a bit scary with the violins swirling and then just bows on strings in an ending that recalls John Lennon‘s “Glass Onion“ another song from The Beatles. What or who is living in that piano? 

“Fishes Swim and Corals Grow” is one of the brightest songs on the album. It’s both a love song about scuba diving and an adult take on “Octopus’s Garden“.

My favorite track on the album is “Got Older Today.” “I got older today just talking to you.” The song’s double bass acts like a heartbeat dreading that “talk.” There’s also a violin that at first is sounding like it’s going to a hoe down and for a moment it appears as if the song might, like the protagonist, turn out okay. But then: “Got older today when you told me the truth and it crushed my heart to paste.“ Sometimes you don’t need a year to get a grey hair; sometimes it just takes a minute. 

“New Thing” could have been on a Nature Strip album not only because it was co-written with Marley but it has that patented McCartney acoustic thing he does with songs like "Blackbird" and "Jenny Wren." But this being Warmer, Encarnacao and company add more instruments and it becomes a darker and fuzzed out thing which leads one to wonder if the new thing is a love interest or something illegal and about to become an addition.

“Get So High I Can’t Get Down” ends the album on a joyful note. It’s a rave up in the Nature Strip mode. And there’s no question that this thing is all about love: “And you can have the tears in my eyes/It’s not the first time happiness cried.” The song (and the album) ends with laughing.

Marveline

Marveline’s Savoury-Toothed Tiger (Bandcamp) is a pure pop delight with some dark passages. For his solo project Marley has put together a group that includes Nature Strip percussionist Jess Ciampa on drums, Matt Langley from the Strip on keys and guitars, Tony Bibby also on drums, and Jack Dunn on guitars. In addition, Rachel Marley and Suzy Goodwin (of Fallon Cush) provide backing vocals.

The funky “Gonna Get Myself A Demon” kicks off the album and sounds like a wish to occasionally visit your dark side. “Turpentine” concerns a woman who thinks in colors and her boyfriend watches them playing in her hair. She also has the power to make things alright: “When the hate is running/When the crazy’s coming/Makes no difference to us/We’ve got our universe.” The song is a great rocker with an Attractions-like feel and some fine lead guitar from John Encarnacao.

Marley cranks up his bass and provides a monster riff on the dark “Bright Lights Of Despair.” With lines like “I hate myself/I love myself/I’ll be drinking nothing but top-shelf“ it sounds like a companion piece to “Gonna Get Myself A Demon“ except the demon is already there. The upbeat “Another Perfect Day” appears to be anything but: “I see you hiding there/Where hope meets the horizon/I sighed and gave it up/Pride leaks away/Another perfect day.”

“Made Of Stars” is a wonderful pop treat that recalls XTC’s “We’re All Light:” “We’re all made of stars/So I know what you are/And I like it/We’re all elements, spun around, slightly bent.” The guitars in the middle bit just rock like crazy. 

Like “New Thing” on Wooden Box With Strings, the sad, lovely “In The Garden” is a Marley and Encarnacao co-wrote. The lonely fellow in the song is not far from being a male Eleanor Rigby: “He’s sitting in the garden/Guarding all the flowers/Finally found something useful again/He doesn’t need much money/Just enough for beer and biscuits.”

Next time: Trip and Ellie's burst of color