Arab Strap
Philophobia
Philophobia, Arab Straps sophomore slam dunk released in the spring of 1998, begins with one of the most memorable opening lines in all of indie rock: "It was the biggest cock youd ever seen, but youve no idea where that cock has been." So begins an album that, while picking up thematically where the duos debut album The Week Never Starts Round Here left off, promises from its very first seconds a renewed sense of purpose: the narratives are more streamlined, the music more confident and mature. Gone are the sketches and doodles that unquestionably distinguished 1996s The Week Never Starts Round Here as the work of first timers, replaced with a consistent, almost conceptual, musical framework. On Philophobia, singer and lyricist Aidan Moffats realism is more profane, gritty and poignant, while multi-instrumentalist Malcolm Middletons honeyed orchestrations increasingly provide clinics in subtlety and restraint.