"I Shot the Bailiff" by Electrik Custard
Review
If you explored the Electrik Custard double album 'Dyslexic Mustard' which came out on Leamington's Beat Rebel Records a year ago, you'll have enjoyed, amongst the very many tracks featuring an almost bewildering array of talented musicians from very many genres, one called "I Shot the Bailiff" which is now released in its own right (I found a post online from Custard chief Custass Finnigan (aka Ethan Shipley) predicting this from back in January, so it looks like it took a while to come to fruition).
Featuring John Shipley, Ethan Shipley, Leon Hall, Clint Bruder, Sophie Greenwood, Rosie Nobbs, WIll Diamond, Steve Goodyear and Finn Bass (I believe), the song appears autobiographical, relating to real life evictions experienced by its composer: who as you know lives a nomadic lifestyle.
With a starting point of Bob Marley's similarly titled song (the tune crops up sporadically), this track veers around like a bus on a road trip with various sections appearing and then fading away: there's plenty of rap, sampled conversations, violin, various vocals, brass and dubby elements: this is a track which simply won't stay in the same place for long but keeps you engaged throughout. As I've said before (probably on every single Electrik Custard review), this man never gets the credit he deserves as a talented & meticulous producer: bordering on fanaticism regarding detail but few else could take the diverse and apparently incompatible smorgasbord of elements and weave them into something this coherent.
The video appears to use footage of a genuine eviction (I suspect Ethan shot this himself on his phone) and the delay in production can be put down to what follows: a great deal of dramatic reconstruction across a lot of locations which must have taken ages to shoot & edit. Most of those who play on it turn up in cameos and as often is the case with Ethan, he uses a degree of bonhomie to lighten the immediate mood without detracting from the seriousness with which he approaches the issue.
You can check it out for yourselves at:
