TOXIC MELONS - Bus Therapy

‘Bus Therapy’ is the latest effort from Newcastle based Toxic Melons, which sinks us into ‘Yellow Submarine’ esque melodies and country inspired metal tunes.

It’s a huge melting pot of psychedelic music at its absolute best which produces Lennon/McCartney sounding tracks like ‘Not In Love’ and ‘Change the World’ and soft strummed ballads like ‘Take Me Back’ – in many respects you could be forgiven for thinking Melons have simply swallowed a ‘Beatles A to Z’ and added their own unique twist to it. That’s not a criticism, because few artists can orchestrate the majesty of the desired sound like it’s found here, and even when you hear something a little different – the Faith No More sounding ‘Disco Balls’ springs to mind – you’ll be almost astonished to discover these efforts are from just a single individual.

While it’s true to say that over 40 musicians from 8 countries (including Slash’s Snakepit Eric Dover) have performed on this phenomenal record, the entire album is written, arranged and produced by Paul Fairbairn – himself something of a musical prodigy for the 21^st Century. 

The songs were all written on bus journeys which Paul took, hoping to give him a deeper understanding of the world in which we lived, inspired by the folk and electronic music he writes. “Toxic Melons” has recently launched a Kick Starter campaign in efforts to get this album a full release – and if there’s any justice in the world – they’ll get exactly what they need!

Words: Wayne Madden