Tag Archives: album

Wave Pictures, released February 2015

1 Reply

A track by track review of Great Big Flamingo Burning Moon, the sixth studio album from Indie trio The Wave Pictures. I am a big fan of the 2013 double album ‘City Forgiveness’ and after a few listens and seeing them live this one is different, but right up there too.

1. Great Big Flamingo Burning Moon. What a great opener, driving bass and drums, surreal and evocative lyric, imagine driving through the desert at night. This track features rhythm guitar from cult artist Billy Childish, the main collaborator and co-writer on this album.
2. I Could Hear The Telephone(3 Floors Above Me). This was the first song played when I saw the band recently, now released as a single. This track highlights the trademark guitar of Dave Tattersall along with some Beatle-esque flourishes and words of minor domestic paranoia. It works its way into your head and stays there.
3. Katie. A solid bass riff from Franic Rozycki, generally a bit heavier and intense, relieved with a bit of glockenspiel. Another two animals in the lyrics, there are a lot on this album…
4. At Dusk You Took Down The Blinds. The title says it all, a quiet love song, gradually turning in on itself. Sparse guitar and light drumming, very effective.
5. All The Birds Lined Up Dot Dot Dot. A rolling bass and guitar and interlocking drum patterns from Jonny Helm. Again the lyric has a feel of (gently) impending doom.
6. Frogs Sing Loudly In The Ditches. Followed by ‘…dragonflies hover overhead’, a title inspired by a mild warning sign at a country hotel! A bit of Half Man Half Biscuit sentiment creeping in here lyrically and plenty going on musically.
7. Sinister Purpose. The first of two cover versions of Creedence Clearwater Revival songs, a rocky edge to this one.
8. Green River. More bluesy this time, with lots of harmonica added to the mood.
9. Fake Fox Fur Pillowcase. Another catchy original, one of my favourites featuring personal insecurities described over big chords and hefty bass and drums.
10. The Fire Alarm. A similar pounding feel to this track, with nightmarish images of nature and instead of the phone ringing it is now the fire-alarm that disturbs.
11. The Goldfish. A superb showcase for the bass, a strong chorus and the singer again mildly tortured, this time by a deserted room and a disquieting fish.
12. We Fell Asleep In The Blue Tent. Juju Claudius adds contrasting backing vocals to this intricate tale of growing up. A summery and nostalgic set of images.
13. Pea Green Coat. The first single from the album, harmonica and sharp chords give it a Wilko Johnson vibe and make the garment in the title sound as cool as it could possibly be.

http://thewavepictures.com/

The War On Drugs, released March 2014

Leave a reply

A retrospective track by track review of ‘Lost In The Dream’ by The War On Drugs, one of the most acclaimed albums of 2014.

1. Under The Pressure. Distant percussion, guitars fade in and out then suddenly it kicks off with piano and the full band sound. We are in for a long opener, as with so many tracks on this album there is plenty of time and space to develop the ideas. Adam Granduciel adds a Dylanesque vocal to a simple chord structure and over the nearly nine minutes there are instrumental twists galore.

2. Red Eyes. The first single when the album was released. A bit more up tempo and sparse, romping along over a pulsing drum then bursting into extra life.

3. Suffering. A haunting but simple statement of love or acceptance, again the length of track allows time for a heavily treated guitar line to bookend the wistful vocal, all reminiscent of late-period Roxy Music.

4. An Ocean In Between The Waves. The musical centrepiece of the album, the singer travelling on musically and lyrically as the cryptically described relationship turns sour over a driving beat and gradual introduction of walls of synthesiser and unrelenting guitar solos.

5. Disappearing. A more relaxing feel to this one, the distant sentiment in the words somehow captured by the floating guitar and repeating piano motif. This whole album sounds so lovingly crafted, every instrumental cameo perfectly placed.

6. Eyes To The Wind. A Waterboys-style big sound pervades this story of moving on, it is energetic and lyrically dense, before playing out gracefully with a saxophone break.

7. The Haunting Idle. An echoing guitar instrumental interlude, could almost be Pink Floyd in 1975, effectively acting as an introduction to….

8. Burning. A recurring repeated piano note, wide-sweeping lyrics and a neat structure with chorus sections make this one of the most accessible songs on the album.

9. Lost In The Dream. A quieter contemplative track, gentle chords and nostalgic imagery.

10. In Reverse. The epic finale, vocal lines over free-form guitar textures, then the band maintain a solid calm backing for the words of regret and impending darkness. The song ends quietly as it began and fades away into the waves…

http://www.thewarondrugs.net/

Alvvays, debut album released July 2014

Leave a reply

One of the best albums of 2014, the self-titled debut by Canadian five-piece Indie-rock band Alvvays. An end of the year track by track review…

1. Adult Diversion. A sliding bass and drums introduces this carefully crafted gem, quickly followed by shimmering guitar then singer Molly Rankin’s opening line ‘How do I get close to you…?’ There are so many clever goings-on in this song, short guitar tricks, drum rolls, there is something new in every listen.

2. Archie, Marry Me. Distant bird song, a simple guitar figure hanging in the air and we are into the best-known track on the album. The lyric is open to interpretation but the title/hook line is very strong. Underneath the band blend guitar and some solid keyboard into a perfect pop single, hopefully destined to be played as the couple walk down the aisle at alternative weddings…

3. Ones Who Love You. The opening song when I saw the band live, this is a grower. Deep keyboards to the fore, under lots of constant and non-repeating guitar lines. Molly’s voice with echo, dreamy and restrained in the mix,’When the wheels come off, I’ll be an astronaut, I’ll be lost in space…’

4. Next of Kin. Another brilliant single from the album, on the surface the unusual ‘controversial’ subject matter is warning against taking drugs before swimming…. When Molly sings ‘I left my love in the river’, never has a song about accidental drowning sounded so good. It is all sung over a busy background of jaunty guitar, driven along like a classic Blondie song. ‘No colour to his skin, inform the next of kin’, a dire warning indeed…

5. Party Police. A change of tempo, slabs of keyboard underpin a plaintive and at times desperate lyric about an unbalanced relationship. Or is it?

6. The Agency Group. Another mid-tempo song, another ambiguous relationship. It is a strong melody with a lovely hook line ‘When you whisper you don’t think of me that way, when I mention you don’t mean that much to me…’

7. Dives. An intriguing lyric over an immersive electronic sound with chiming guitar make this one of the more experimental tracks, with rewards each time you hear it.

8. Atop a Cake. This song forms a nice triptych with the opening two tracks, a pure confection of quick moving summer guitar pop, but again with the dark lyrical undertone of relationship difficulties.

9. Red Planet. A surprise closing song with electronic instrumental sound only, the haunting vocal performance and impressionistic lyrics drift into your consciousness and stay there.

As does the rest of the album..

http://alvvays.com/

Album Review, The Centimes, released 12 Oct 2014

Leave a reply

Track by track review of the new CD ‘Wooden Shirts’ by Cambridge Indie band The Centimes.

1. Wooden Shirts. A lively opener, setting the template of 12-string guitar, driving drums and solid bass. Some acapella vocals and harmonies add extra gloss to the mix.
2. Local Pool. Previously a single, a driving rhythm behind a full sound and strong vocal, the much repeated line ‘the party’s over, find another party’ indicating fruitless Saturday night wanderings or maybe a bigger metaphor.
3. I’m Fine. Coupled with Local Pool on the single release, a sparse but well-balanced and rather lovely song with a Velvet Underground first album feel. The sort of song to be playing in your head when you wave goodbye at the railway station after a weekend that didn’t go that well, perhaps with some regrets but ultimately tinged with optimism.
4. Locked Out. A moody echoing guitar figure slowly starts, then goes into another up tempo track. Lots going on behind the lead vocal, even a bit of synthesiser.
5. Billy. A change of direction into an American blues rock sound, heavier guitar and rolling bassline, smoky voice on the verse then blistering chorus that leaves no doubt that Billy is ‘the only one’.
6. La La Land. The guitar goes into full jangly mode, developing into a Chic style rhythm over steady drumming on one of the more musically changeable tracks on the album.
7. Stormy Tuesday. The musical centrepiece of the album, a long instrumental introduction, a pounding bass gathering storm, thunder and lightning on the drums and guitar eventually resolving into chords, then the voices blend well together for a lyric of threatening weather nightmare….play this one loud.
8. I Don’t See It Anymore. A slightly heavier track, each lyric line answered by the title phrase. A bit of keyboard and a guitar solo add to the atmosphere.
9. Little Table. Like a track from the first Orange Juice album the echoing 12-string skates on top of the bass and solid drum beat, then a tale of relationship aftermath unfolds with a strong optimistic chorus.
10. Spider. Often the first song of the live set, this is a confident but subtle mid-tempo closer to the album. An end of summer mood, beginning with a slow chiming picked chord, answered by a delicate descending bass run and some non-drums percussion and gentle vocal. The song keeps building, by the end we have strings and synthesisers and as the last chord fades away we are very glad we have shared 40 minutes with The Centimes, it is an impressive debut album.

http://www.thecentimes.com/index.html
http://thecentimes.bandcamp.com/