MUSIC REVIEW: Aidan Moffat & RM Hubbert – Here Lies The Body

Falkirk born Aidan Moffat is a staple of the Glaswegian music scene. In high school, Moffat listened to The Pixies, Dinosaur Jr. and Slint – all originating from the alt-rock scene in the USA. Although Moffat’s soundscape is often made up of poetic spoken word, these influences can be heard in the low, gritty undertones of his work. Moffat is aware of the dark underbelly of his work, describing ‘Here Lies the Body’ as “not exactly daytime music”.

‘Here Lies The Body’ was released in May 2018 with RM Hubbert. A prominent member of the Scottish DIY music scene, Hubbert is known for his punk Flamenco guitar style. You would be wrong to treat him as a backing star on this album, as his gentle finger work on the guitar creates an enchanting lullaby that sets the scene for the analogies of love, lust, sex and death.

Moffat and Hubbert remove the rose-tinted glasses of love and loss. The blurred lines and movement of the album art transpires into the musical composition as the charcoal tones mimic the vivacious fire within the lyrical narrative. The non-linear narrative style tells of old flames rekindling on respective stag and hen do’s in Blackpool, when they are of the age to probably ‘know better’, is told in a beautifully chaotic manner. The intertwined elements of age and morality add an interesting vulnerability that accelerate the taboo of instinctual feelings discussed throughout.

Hitting play on this album is like igniting a spark that engulfs the track list and burns long after the listener has put the album to bed. First track, ‘Cockcrow’, sets the story line as Siobhan Wilson accompanies Moffat. Her softer tones wrap around Moffat’s gruffness and create an audible conversation between love and lust. The two voices and juxtaposed emotions create a space between the crossover of a daydream and a nightmare.

Moffat is often frank with his wording. ‘Mz. Locum’ illustrates the mutual tension between the two old flames in Blackpool, “she said I fancy a change, I said, well I fancy you, hen!”. The bluntness of this statement shows the pull between desire and distraction. Mz. Locum is described sadly as a love song who is yet to be sung, and lustfully as “a bombshell in leggings, a goddess in jeggings”. The intense, fleeting, temporality of this strung out love story, is solidified in ‘Party On’ where Moffat and Wilson repeat, “I’m your here, I’m your now”.

While the name ‘Here Lies The Body’ stands as a metaphor for sex, it also stands as a metaphor for death. Written up to resemble the scene of a murder, an ode to the namesake of the album is found in ‘Keening for a Dead Love’, “our bucket’s kicked, we’ve gone for good, here lies the body of us”. In tune with the burning fire throughout, the last track, Fringe drifts off with the faint sizzling of a campfire.