Mojave 3 – Excuses for Travellers

The founding members of Mojave 3 include singer and guitarist Neil Halstead, bassist and singer Rachel Goswell, and drummer Ian McCutcheon—all of whom were members of the pioneering shoegaze band Slowdive. The band first emerged in 1995, when a six-song demo impressed the label 4AD so much that they were offered a record deal.

After returning to London, where the band lived and worked at the famous Fortress Studios, they recorded *Excuses for Travellers*—the first of two consecutive albums recorded with the help of their friend, electronic artist Mark Van Hoen. The album combines the melancholy and understated intimacy of *Ask Me Tomorrow* with the “Laurel Canyon” soul of *Out of Tune*; here the band refines its style into a more cohesive work that sits right in the middle of its ever-evolving sonic spectrum. With its rich texture of understated guitars, drums, pedal steel guitar, horns, and piano, it’s a contemplative campfire album that centers on Neil’s voice and songwriting (“In Love with a View,” “My Life in Art,” “She Broke You So Softly”). It also features the only two Mojave 3 songs credited solely to Rachel (“Bringin’ Me Home”) and Ian (“Got My Sunshine”), respectively. Speaking about his development as a songwriter, Neil says: “Unlike Slowdive, where the music takes center stage and no one pays attention to what’s actually being sung, you couldn’t really hide the lyrics with Mojave 3. I had to think more carefully about them and work on them more intensively.”

Reviews

C. Hammer in stereoplay 7/00: "With a density that is almost painfully beautiful, Halstead—undoubtedly one of the most moving musical personalities in the British pop scene, which is certainly not lacking in great melancholics—pours out a cornucopia of bittersweet harmonies, enchanting with blurred guitar chords, comforting warm horn sections, and even organ sounds of church music-like sublimity.”

Genre: Punk & Alternative