You might know Elliot Speller-Gillott as the gawky yet loveable nephew in the superior BBC3 sitcom Uncle, but the 17-year-old is also a gifted musician and aficionado of psych and prog. He’s released two albums just this year: Trousers Of The Mind and this extraordinary selection. From the atonal harmonies of catchyas- hell opener Nothing Going On up to quirky closer Back When I Was A Grave Robber, the allusions come thick and fast. Speller-Gillot approaches vocals with Peter Hammill’s emotion-overpitch style, and assumes a persona of a shabby vaudevillian with a large Gong collection; someone who’d bid for Zappa’s bowler hat at Sotheby’s. Plenty of that man in here: the tale of ingesting the wrong substance that is Soft Slices Of Cheese, the Montanaesque cod soul of Underpass, and Uncle Meat-referencing Part 3/Teminus Dumpsey End. Elsewhere, there’s Talking Heads and Warm Jets-era Eno (Fresh Water), and Steve Harley’s glam surrealism (Marvellously Mediocre). He’s a talented bassist too – cue sub-Primus funk (The First Rule/Looseshoe), all delivered with a love of wordplay and lysergic joy. Fans of nu-school psychers Knifeworld et al will eat this up.
Elliot Speller-Gillott - You Can’t Eat Out Of The Singing Bowl album review
Extraordinary musical outing from the young Uncle actor

Why you can trust Louder Our expert reviewers spend hours testing and comparing products and services so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about how we test.