Once it is out, it does not go back in. Vague puzzles in the recent title of this Beans on Toast release are a nice beginning. Get it out in the open and accept it. No point pushing it back down the tube. It just does not go that way. The folksy punk talents of Mr Beans are, as ever, an acceptably nice delight for the ears – The Toothpaste and the Tube are no surprise for the hardened fans of his music. Colour-coded covers, eventually the palette will run dry and numbering these releases will be easier. Such is the life of a prolific musician, and his work on this new record, just a year on from his children’s album, is more of the same consistencies found in earlier works.
Similarities between Frank Turner and Beans on Toast are apparent from word go. Light and fluffy tunes of getting back out on the road and talking through the process of heading on the stage. Back Out on the Road is a solid enough opener with plenty going on – for returning fans the acoustic guitar is still there and for new listeners, there is a little bit more to this than the rest of his works. A Covid-themed track three years on from the start of the event is a tad tiring though at least Mr Beans, real name Jay McAllister, does not take the Van Morrison route. Instead, the virus is a backdrop to other events in his life – personalised and stylish with instrumentals a-plenty. Costly woes on Hope & Glory steady the worries of the everyday, and Beans on Toast proves, as ever, he is the voice of an irate people.
Champion the everyday as often as McAllister does and you walk among heroes. Beans on Toast collects the topics of the day and rushes them out into a record of welcome qualities. Nothing to drum up a fuss about, nor anything to sway and move yourself to. The Toothpaste and the Tube is a neat piece from a man whose consistencies are proving genuinely terrifying. A decade on from his first release, a record every year – and there are no signs of wear and tear, these are still the same bits of quality McAllister can proudly showcase. Where a lack of variation flows in comes an understanding of how Beans on Toast works as an artist, the quality and quantity of his work equally balanced, for good or ill.
References to Jarvis Cocker on The Golden Lion are a surprise – though it should not be as Steve Davis and other pop culture figures are all bashed around the pub which brings out more fond memories from McAllister. Every Beans on Toast release has a sincerity at its heart which prevents it from being a forgettable piece, and this is another enjoyable batch. The Toothpaste and the Tube has no surprises but the comfort held within is a neat addition to an ever-growing discography. Solid protest song Against the War comes at a time rife with conflict – horribly fitting given conflicts which burst into life after the release of the track. Tender and relevant as expected from McAllister, The Toothpaste and the Tube will hit well with those already established as fans of Beans on Toast.
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