Here are my favourites:- You Are Everyone – a tale of tainted love that epitomises much of the set; Sunday and In Self Defense – two subtle yet beautiful numbers; Muster and Seventy Times Seven – delightful pop; Unfinished Valentine – jangly anguish; Third Time, No Charm – a great infectious song; Mrs. Kowalski & Dockers – swirling murky & melodious.
An inspiring musician...the Chancellor uses an experimental edge and courage in creating swirling collages of noise and melody. I'd rather listen to this than anything Bowie has produced recently.
Now more than ever, McLaughlin is heading towards the sinister but tuneful territory of Babybird and Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti. There's that same sense of reclusive pop genius at work here.
Like Bowie, Cave and Waits - Dreamy and laid back, but with an endearing appeal. The overall feeling oozes an air of poignant rejection. Songs from the basement for those with a desire for sorrowful compatriotism.
Chancellorpink draws on his love for Bowie and '80s synth-rock, with his rich poetry and haunting croon. The standout is a sturdy guitar-rocker "Third Time, No Charm" that deserves some spins on the radio.
Chancellorpink really rises above the fray of standard-issue mopey romantic popsters in his use of atmospherics, using a palette of tinny distorted glazes to evoke a fragile vulnerability.
Chancellorpink busts out the John Lennon influences in full on his latest disc, "Life Like Sad Music", evoking the album "Double Fantasy"/late 70's Lennon. McLaughlin's vocal melodies and low tonality pull it off quite well.
An amalgam of David Bowie, Scott Walker and Stephin Merritt. It becomes clear that McLaughlin (who wrote, produced and played everything) is a man of singular vision.
Between Bryan Ferry, David Bowie or also Lou Reed are the stencils with which McLaughlin, with extremely entertaining and rich tension, understands how to paint...A real discovery for me, a recommendation for the inclined reader!
Personal and real. An interesting, disjointed, calm sort of rage, of the sort that tends to come after heartbreak.
The pop-music landscape would be a lot less exciting if there weren't Chancellorpinks on the outskirts, doing just this sort of thing.
You're supposed to feel this one, not just listen to it. And that's just what happens.
An adventure in sound recalling the glam of Bowie and gloom of Nick Cave with vocals that are, by turns, pretty and pretty eerie.
The perfect moment is reached for "Mrs. Kowalski" where McLaughlin's yearning vocals are balanced against rattlingly intense guitars. It's a terrific song by anyone's standards.
Diverse, exhilarating and, at times, intense. With substantive and emotion-stirring lyrics.
A truly original voice - McLaughlin definitely has a story to tell and knows how to do it with original style.
Literate, clever and passionate, the songs have staying power.
An entrancing 12-track indie-pop record with the shades of early, arty Bowie.
McLaughlin's strength is his sonic imagination, deploying a lush range of keyboard textures and spacey effects.