Abstract Expressionist painter Jackson Pollock, when asked where his famous drip technique originated, said it was “natural growth born out of a need” – a burning desire to create, regardless of circumstance or result. Similarly, Billy Fuller, the permanently seated bass player from Beak>, confides, “I’m making music like I always do. I have no idea who or what it’s for…”. That kind of fuzzy logic works both for and against him here.

Fragments is Fuller’s first solo release since Beak>’s indefinite hiatus, compiling sixteen cuts, demos and long-forgotten sketches from the past few years. Those pieces have lain untouched until now. The question is: should they have remained that way? Everything here is Fuller’s own work, much of it instrumental and daubed in his trademark strangeness. There is decent material, if you’re willing to dig for it. Lead track ‘Rummer’ carries an early Joy Division feel, driven by urgent motorik beats and a cascading Korg synth line, while ‘Three Blind Mice’ nods to Gary Numan, with its haunted electronica and extra-terrestrial unease.

‘I Can’t’ basks in an embryonic Spacemen 3 charm, shards of guitar circling a primitive rhythm and squelchy effects. Standout ‘Won A Synth’ flirts with an eerie bass figure and precise beats, and could have been developed further. That, ultimately, is the record’s biggest flaw: a lack of discernment about what deserves attention and, more importantly, what needs kicking to the kerb. ‘Whammy’, short though it is, sounds like a spotty upstart trying every pedal in a guitar shop at once and is borderline unlistenable. ‘Blackstar’ feels generic and tossed-off, while ‘Tailgates & Ratchet Straps’, one of only two tracks with vocals, plays like the sound of a hangover, complete with a wailing fire engine bell.

Billy Fuller’s musical instincts are not in question nor is his super droll Bristolian humour. Fragments could be chopped down to a tight five-track EP and function very well, rather than presenting half-finished outlines that blunt stronger ideas. What he ends up with is the good, the blah and the ugly.