Fidelity

I've written about The Durutti Column previously on fifty occasions- and that's not nearly enough- and usually about songs and records released during the lifespan of Factory Records. Tony Wilson and Vini were friends and Tony was a massive supporter of Vini and in the early 80s took him under his wing, managed him and put his records out. After Factory's demise Vini continued to make albums, often with long term drummer and friend Bruce Mitchell. The post- Factory albums are somewhat overlooked and undeservedly so- there's an embarrassment of riches contained within them, Vini (and Bruce) as creative as ever. 

In 1994 The Durutti Column released their first post- factory album Sex And Death (out on Wilson's Factory Too label, bankrolled by London Records). Sex And Death opens with Anthony, a song for Wilson and contains the mighty Fado, inspired by Vini's love of Portuguese music. 

Two years after that came Fidelity, one of the band's peaks and largely unknown. It was released on Belgian Label Le Disques Du Crepuscule and is a gem, Vini in a room full of synths and drum machines- programmed drums and electronic textures are at the centre of Fidelity, with Vini's guitar playing the icing on the cake. He sings a little, his whisper drenched in reverb with Eley Rudge providing a stronger, more upfront vocal presence. Vini's trademark melancholy creeps in but there's optimism too and sonically a nod to 1990's Obey The Time (a largely electronic album, his last on Factory). 

If you only know Durutti Column on Factory, Fidelity is a good place to start exploring the wider Vini Reilly back catalogue. Vini's music remains resolutely out of time to me- it doesn't sound like any particular period. Fidelity doesn't bear much relation to 1996. I'm not sure it's timeless, more out of time, out of sync. A bit like the man himself maybe. 

The title track and opening song kicks in with a jolt- When The Levee Breaks, sampled and stuttering. Vini's guitar sounding most un- Vini like comes in, chords and texture. Later synths burst in and keys and then Eley's voice, singing the word from the title, while the drums crash around her and synths twinkle and burble. 

Fidelity