Yeah Saint Paul (or Angel River to give him his real name) is one of those musical wunderkinds. The sort of person who plays every instrument on his records and demands total control. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t and in the case of Women Are Stoned it’s a rather mixed bag of results.
Opener 'The Good Ones' has a pleasant Kinks feel about although the uncanny resemblance to Pete Doherty mixed in with the mad urge to burst into 'Daydream' by The Lovin’ Spoonful throws you a bit.
It’s a strong song though and bodes well. That is until Yeah Saint Paul sort of loses the plot a bit and sinks into sub-funk and scratchy guitars.
'Gold' is OK although the strange Gallic sound that seems to invade the next few songs does start to grate. It’s lo-fi for a generation maybe grown up on Serge Gainsborough and it doesn’t quite work. There are charms and parts of 'Reform' and 'Needle on Plastic' do lift the momentum.
A swift diversion into Country for 'Tellstory Eyes' works a treat and the Yeah Saint Paul show is back up running. It’s a fantastic turn of events and one that lifts the album out of the doldrums although 'New Winter', a few songs later, is an unmitigated clattering mess.
Thankfully this is a low point before a rather great end to the album where Yeah Saint Paul seems to explore as many genres as possible. 'A Universe in the Grain' lifts off with its funky beat and rhythm whilst 'Soul' & 'The Footsteps' takes on upbeat garage rock. The best track is 'Gone' though as its slowburning psych unfolds into a nightmarish epic. It’s a great end to an album of ups and downs and demonstrates there is a keen ear for music and an ability to get it right sometimes. Just not all the time.
