It turns out that English guitarist Richard Thomas was not done after he had released a trilogy of homemade albums by his solo project Mint Biscuit. He went back to his collection of instrumentals and picked five of them that he particularly liked for an EP, Quitting The Biscuits.
After the short Boss Sounds Lady - basically an exploration of the capabilities of effects pedal he just got his hands on - Thomas takes the listener for a walk on Elva Hill in Cumbria, a place best known for an ancient stone circle that has been the source of many tales and speculations. On Elva is a beautiful piece of meandering, pastoral psych rock. Why he has been sitting on this one for so long is a mystery.
North-Easter is a throwback to his days as a member of the indie rock band Mint. With Phase-Out he dares to experiment again, playing a flurry of soft-spoken minor key chords. With the bluesy Slide In Baby - using a theme he also explored with Polaroid Android on his Instrumental Illness album - Thomas brings the EP to a close. Quitting The Biscuits is not just an afterthought or the result of a Spring clearing. It's short for sure, but it can stand on its own.
Quitting The Biscuits is a self-released EP. Buy it (pay-what-you-want) from his website.
Tracks:- Boss Sounds Lady
- On Elva
- North-Easter
- Phase Out
- Slide In Baby
» Mint Biscuit on Bandcamp
HCTF review of Completing The Cycle.
