Kubb may not be a household name for many, especially since Mother is their only album as a band, and the fact that it came out in 2005. A friend who was living in Liverpool at the time recommended it to me and my brother, since he was friends with Harry Collier, Kubb‘s amazing singer.

As it happens sometimes, there are songs that stand the test of time. In my case, Chemical is such a song. 15 years after first hearing it, it still strikes a chord. It’s such a perfectly crafted, beautifully written song. It works its way through calm, peaceful moments and climaxes with intense choral arrangements, all surrounding a central theme: drug abuse mistaken for love. I find this to be an extremely complex thing to put down in words, and Chemical resolves it fantastically.

Kubb was a British indie band, who peaked in 2006 after appearing in some perfume commercial I’ve never seen, where Wicked Soul was featured. They soon disbanded, after several members declaring that they weren’t interested in forming and being in a band.

The album as a whole doesn’t really make the earth shake, but there are memorable moments. Aside the aforementioned Chemical, other tracks that stand out are the opener Remain, Wicked Soul, Somebody Else (you’d be forgiven for mistaking Collier‘s singing to Jeff Buckley‘s), and Grow. It sports a mixture of styles that fail to define Kubb‘s sound as a whole, but rather showcase Collier‘s ability to move boundaries and experiment in creating from his very defined influences.

After Kubb‘s vanishing, Collier has since been releasing a couple of EPs under his real name, and collaborating with bands like Faithless and Rootjoose. For me, it’s a shame that we can’t have more of his soulful, inspiring voice and thoughtful songwriting. Here’s to hoping…