• Band / Artist : Candy Butchers – mySpace
• Genre : Folk / Acoustic / Pop
• Sample Track Download : Making Up Time
• Buy CD : Band Store
• Buy Digital Download : N/A
• Rating : 9 out of 10

One of the bands that gained a huge surge of popularity in the early days of podcasting was the Candy Butchers. Several songs including “Let’s Have a Baby”, “Give Me A Second Chance For Christmas” and the insanely catchy “What to do with Michael”, caused a new wave of interest for the Candy Butchers, who hadn’t had a new album since 2004’s Hang on Mike, from which two of those earlier songs were taken. In November of 2005, Mike Viola one half of the Candy Butchers creative duo, released his Just Before Dark, solo album, which showcased the more raw and acoustic side of Mike’s talents. Realizing there was now an audience waiting with baited breath for new material, Mike decided to dust off some recordings made with Todd Foulsham,that had previously laid un-released and turned them into the album you see here, Making Up Time, which comprises of 10 tracks, recorded between 1994 and 1998.

For an album who’s tracks are between 8 and 12 years old, there’s a nice freshness to it. Whether that’s the stripped down,live production, or the hunger for new Candy Butchers material, I don’t know, but suffice to say this is a cracking album, with some wonderful tracks.

Opening up with the title track “Making Up Time”, it’s by no means the strongest of tracks, but I have to admit it does grow on you. It’s the next track “What I Won’t Give” that really brings to the fore everything that is great about the Candy Butchers. As I’ve mentioned before, I’m a big fan of a distinctive voice and Mike Viola certainly has that. When you fuse that with some great pop melodies, you are onto another sure fire hit. “Brother’s Back” is another track that follows this winning formula. I won’t bore you with a full on dissection of the album, but this is a great album to be sure. My favorite track on the album would have to be “Bruises and Beauty Marks”, which digs into your subconscious within minutes of listening. My least favorite track would have to be “Circus” or rather it was upon first listening. Even that track has won me over, which is very unusual when I have such a strong first reaction. It’s one of those bizarre tracks, that whilst having it’s own merits, sticks out like a sore thumb on this particular album. The album finishes up with a suitably unusual “Jerry Rigged”, which has a real early 60’s feel to it.

Conclusion : It’s nice to have a new album from the Candy Butchers. I wonder whether the next batch of new material will be Candy Butchers or Mike Viola solo. Go forth an purchase, forthwith!