Sydney group Warmer's third album, Spider and Lamb, was released in April 2011 by Half A Cow. Upon hearing it, HAC’s Nic Dalton declared: “It’s your Sgt Peppers!”, perhaps picking up on the Beatles-esque pop eclecticism and variety of moods. The album ranges from the delicate folk of ‘Broken Wing’ and ‘Then It Hit Me’, to the passionate rock of ‘Spider and Lamb’ and ‘Wah-Hoo’, and the wide-screen trips of ‘People Round Here’, ‘Home’ and ‘No Bad Messiah’.

The group is lead by singer-songwriter-guitarist John Encarnacao and shares players with other HAC artists Dog Trumpet (drummer Jess Ciampa) and Bernie Hayes (Jess and John). Jess and bassist Peter Marley have been part of the group since its inception in 2002. Pete now co-heads The Nature Strip with John, with both writing songs for that project which has released an album, Stars Turn Inside Out (2013) and EP, Plainclothes (2014 - find them on China Pig Records).

Warmer’s debut, A Prayer For Soft Honey (2002) was a reflective acoustic rock affair, while follow up The Cat’s Miaow (2005) jammed out with country, rock and lo-fi threads. Spider and Lamb draws on all of these influences for a concise selection of psychedelic pop.

Warmer – Spider and Lamb – track by track with John E.

1 Spider and Lamb
Humans really have little idea of how an insect or a dog or a seahorse experiences the world. Is it really less profound than the experience of a human? As with ‘Wah-Hoo’ and ‘Broken Wing’, a typically clear and crisp recording by Michael Carpenter, and inspired rhythm section stuff from Jess and Pete. A Crazy Horse vibe for me, tying it to ‘Valley Song’ from The Cat’s Miaow – and it does use NY’s ‘Cinnamon Girl’ tuning (double drop-D).

2 People Round Here
Paranoia in a hot climate. The Flies’ old drum machine and a $20 casio. Written while on tour in the Northern Territory at the same time as ‘Creature’ from The Cat’s Miaow.

3 Cold Diamond Armchair
Featuring the sterling Mick O’Regan on organ (see ‘Hyperballad’ and ‘Clear Light’ from the Time’s Come EP, and the aforementioned ‘Valley Song’ for MO on guitar). A bit of a country jam that goes to Dixieland in the bridge thanks to Robbie Balatincz, banjo, Holly Harrison, trumpet and Brendan Smyly, soprano saxophone (and recording skills). Written as a pair with ‘Spider’.

4 Something Like Being Alive
A three-minute pop-angst epic. While The Cat’s Miaow LP wasn’t afraid of a guitar solo, Spider & Lamb is almost bereft of them, save for the brief bits here (I tip my hat to Messrs Harrison and Frehley, masters of the concise and melodic). Mr Carpenter guests here on splashy drums.

5 Broken Wing
Thanks to Bill Gibson for the celestial BVs. Tried to teach myself to finger-pick with this one, and finished it on the same long car journey south to Sydney as ‘Wah-Hoo’. First performed when I supported Robyn Hitchcock and the Venus Three at the Clarendon, Katoomba in 2006.

6 Black Cat
I heard this as a TV theme – a crime show on the ABC perhaps. Recorded it as a demo in Rich Sanford’s garage.

7 Wah-Hoo
On a drive back from Arakoon, I found myself listening to a Radio National program on the works of 13th century Persian spiritual mystic Rumi. Somehow that led to this song. Carpenter to the rescue again on slide guitar, Pete with a cryptic bass solo, and Jess with the wack-est drum fill in the universe. Cosmic, man, especially the free-spritied BVs from Zoe Carides.

8 Then It Hit Me
This track reminds me of traipsing around rural Japan with a cassette with Elliott Smith’s XO on one side and Jason Falkner’s Author Unknown on the other. Killer tape! It really set me on the path for Warmer, as well as lessons learnt from listening to the clarity of the songwriting on Lucinda Williams’ Essence. Thanks to UWS for the harpsichord and glockenspiel. Brendan’s sax at the end of this kills me.

9 No Bad Messiah
Maybe this is the closest I will get to a monster Can groove. Not that close, I know, but it’s still a trancey trip to play live. Jess’s bass guitar is righteous, like he’s playing a tuba or something. The pump-organ was a blast – the bridge attack was recorded in real time.

10 Home
Adrian Barr’s recording work was a real partner in creating the soundscape here. Disorientation. Who am I? Who was I? I’m miles away. Like ‘People Round Here’ this is a solo effort aside from the recording skills of Brendan and Adrian.

11 Quadrille
A hymn, as always, to end.