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Merz: Loveheart

Andy Gill, The Independent, 14 October 2005

AS THE LAST MILLENNIUM drew to its close, Conrad Lambert, aka Merz, seemed poised for The Big Time. Signed for a six-figure advance to a major label, his debut had excited widespread critical acclaim, drawing comparisons with Beck and Badly Drawn Boy for the way it blended intelligent, folksy songwriting with carefully sculpted arrangements involving an array of electronics, brass, strings and found sounds, alongside the basic rock instrumentation. For a while, his became the name to drop, and his music exerted a quiet hold over Jarvis Cocker, Pete Tong and Chris Martin.

Total word count of piece: 383

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