Room, The - The Telling

LP black vinyl with 4pp. lyric insert
CD in jewel case with 8pp. booklet

Liverpool post-punk pioneers The Room are back with a new album. Theirs is a melodic blend of progressive, alternative pop and sultry post-punk, which is just as fresh and relevant now as it was when they first broke up in 1985. Firm favourites of the late, great John Peel; they have been compared to Joy Division, The Fall and fellow Liverpool band Echo & the Bunnymen.

Following 2023’s warmly recieved ‘Restless Fate’ is new album ‘The Telling’. Consisting of 11 songs that tell a continuous folk-horror story set in a mythical 17th-century European forest. A traveling storyteller mesmerizes an isolated village with macabre tales of wonder, mystery, and the supernatural. The idea was conceived as an aural movie told in self-contained songs that represent chapters in a complete narrative and has no lyrical choruses that repeat its themes. The album comes with a full lyric sheet influenced by the layout of the Guttenberg Bible. Frontman and lyricist Dave Jackson’s interest in folklore and myths is absolutely apparent, the story is effortlessly conveyed through his spirited yet acerbic vocals. The album features: the welcome return of original The Room drummer Clive Thomas and his fluid open-handed drumming; the haunting backing vocals of Helena Jacks; founder-member Becky Stringer (bass guitar); Ethan Kyme (keyboards); Darren Brown (guitar). A magical sonic adventure for fans of 80s post-punk and folk-horror aesthetics. 

1. The Teller 
2. After the Wolf
3. Lake Hut
4. The Lovers #1
5. Fire Arrows
6. Nemesis
7. Wolf Pool
8. Argol
9. The Lovers #2
10. Hammers of the Witchfinders
11. Story’s End