"With the exception of the power supply to the 8 track recorder, this LP was recorded without the use of electricity." So say the liner notes of Matthew Stead’s The City Lost Me Too.
What we are left with is an accoustic guitar, a flute and a voice. And that’s your lot. The album is certainly a change in style from his other identity as lead singer of The Mighty Stars ("purveyors of girl fuelled garage beat-punk"). Guitar Song
Matthew Stead uses his guitar with more accomplishment and imagination than most. He picks out melodies, counter melodies and harmonies, along with the traditional strum-along you might expect of most guitarists. Given that this is a young man singing sensitive songs while his guitar gently weeps, it would not necessarily be surprising to find a Nick Drake comparison floating into view. | "This CD comes highly recommended. If you like your Nick Drake songs with a local twist, you’ll love it. If you don’t, you might just love it anyway." | | Stephen Morris |
And while this sort of comparison can usually be dismissed as lazy reviewing (i.e. any three piece loud garage band singing about sex and drugs must be the next Green Day or Nirvana), there really is something to this comparison. Hazey Jane III Just compare the flute solo on "Do You Hear Me Calling?" to Robert Kirby’s string arrangement on Nick Drake’s "Hazey Jane I" or the relentless rhythms of "Money Made You Sick Again" to Drake’s "Know". Hey, there’s even a reference to Hazey Jane (I or II, I’m not sure) in Stead’s "Hospital", in which Gloucester gets a rare lyrical mention, perhaps for the first time since some bloke wrote about a GP visiting the city during a period of inclement weather.
"The train is pulling into Gloucester/people weaving here and there/your voice is filling into my ear/I still hear you Hazey Jane," runs the lyric before Sarah Foxen takes up her solo on the flute. The Thoughts of Matthew Stead The songs on this LP vary in theme from sibling rivalry in "Brother" ("If it wasn’t for being your brother, you wouldn’t want me around") to the night-time wanderings of "The City Lost Me Too" right back to the horticulturally-themed love song of "My Garden is You".
Elsewhere, the music does the talking. "Money Made You Sick Again" and "Fools" are simple songs without words, white the flute and guitar instrumentals during the tracks with lyrics are some of the most poignant and beautiful moments on the album. This CD comes highly recommended. If you like your Nick Drake songs with a local twist, you’ll love it. If you don’t, you might just love it anyway. | 
