Jimmy Eat World - Invented

Arizona's Jimmy Eat World returned this year with their seventh studio album Invented. I wasn't such a big fan of 2007's Chase This Light, whilst it isn't a bad album I think it's stuck half way in between their early raw sound such as Clarity and their flagship albums, & Bleed AmericanFutures.

So when Invented came along I wasn't as excited as I perhaps should have been, Jimmy Eat World are one of my favourite bands yet I had that feeling of "meh" when Invented was announced.

What can be taken from the album however is that it is similar to Chase This Light, but in some strange way I find that slightly forgiving? It's as if Jim Adkins and co are happy in their little place. After a few listens the album comes into it's own and whilst it will never be as popular as Bleed American, it's a bloody good record in itself.

I find myself sticking songs on repeat constantly, the opening Heart Is Hard To Find is brilliant whilst the duet on Coffee and Cigarettes with Courtney Marie Andrews is quite beautiful, A simple song about simple lives summed up with "nothing quite compares, to easy times and easy eyes to meet you in a stare"

In fact Courtney sings on 5 of the tracks from Invented and it's a nice touch.

All in all a really fun record, it doesn't pull up any tree's it's not really original but it still screams Jimmy Eat World, It will surely be a hit to fans.

Rating 8/10


Northern Soul

listening to:
Death Cab For Cutie - Narrow Stairs - Cath...

KT Tunstall - Tiger Suit

It's been 3 years since Ms Tunstall's last offering, Drastic Fantastic, so there is a reasonable amount riding on Tiger Suit - the name taken from a reoccuring dream Tunstall had as a child.

She's always been a popular artist since her jump into the limelight. As a performer she is exciting and fresh, demonstrated below with her appearance on Jools Holland 3 years ago:



The sound is more polished but at the same time some of the rawness has been retained. Opener Uummannaq Song presents a the slight change in style for Tunstall with tribal cries and a battle-like beat thumping throughout the song. Push That Knot Away veers towards the more traditional Tunstall of Eye To The Telescope and yet there is a certain blues-zing which adds a freshness. Glamour Puss flirts with the listener whilst carrying them out the door via the toe-tapping drums and guitar.
Just as the album starts to fade (Still A) Weirdo takes it down a beat and the introspective Tunstall peeks out, still light and fun and definitely a stand-out track.

Tiger Suit is a change for Tunstall yet her raw vocals remind us of just how good she is. Creativity oozes from every track and whilst she may lose a few of the old guard, there are sure to be plenty new fans to take their place.

A solid effort that'll keep your foot tapping throughout.

~SouthernHeart

Listening to: KT Tunstall - Madame Trudeaux

Manic Street Preachers - Postcards From A Young Man

Manic Street Preachers - Postcards From A Young Man

There are undoubtedly two sides to Manic Street Preachers. The political side which was most evident on The Holy Bible, or the radio friendly side with melodies which anyone would find hard to dislike.

So when The Manics returned with an album both James and Nicky describe as "one last shot at mass communication" It doesn't take a genius to figure out what you would expect from their tenth album.

And it doesn't disappoint either. Postcards From A Young Man opens on the brilliantly catchy single (It's Not War) Just The End Of Love, leading away from this is the title track followed by the superb Some Kind Of Nothingness.


The album is everything you would expect from modern day Manics, James' Lyrics are strong as ever, The Catchy guitar riffs are ever present throughout also.

something perhaps a little different however is the backing gospel choir and Strings arrangements through the album. It certainly makes it more anthemic and brings the sing along feel to each track.

And this is where Postcards From A Young Man will split fans. If you're a big fan of Generation Terrorists or The Holy Bible then this album is completely opposite.

However if you grew up (like I did) to If You Tolerate This or A Design For Life, then Postcards From A Young Man will certainly please.

The Manics are keeping well within the safety lines here but I still think it works very well and will keep the majority of their fans pleased.

8/10

Northern Soul

Listening to:

Manic Street Preachers - Postcards From A Young Man - All We Make Is Entertainment

A few albums

It's been a while since either of us have posted on here, But I suppose I should keep up the blog, if for nothing else than for my own personal satisfaction. I've never been much of a writer (as may be evident) but when there's something I'm passionate about I just love to talk about it.

The last album review I did was Flaws by Bombay Bicycle and instead of doing a full album review, I will give a brief summary of some albums I've heard since then and give a couple of ratings. Why not hey?

Arcade Fire - The Suburbs

There's no denying this album is critically acclaimed, pretty much every review i've read has been glistening, So I was bitterly disappointed that after multiple attempts, The Suburbs just didn't grab me at all. It's their longest album to date, over an hour long. And an hour of well just boredom for me. The sound is still there but there's no highlights. It's just a drab affair. My rating - 4/10



The Book Club - The Book Club EP

Since the split of Milburn in 2007 there has been a big void in my musical life. The Sheffield band were one of my favourites and were extremely under rated. After the split they went their separate ways, a lot of failed attempts but now it looks like Joe Carnall may finally return with a band who despite their own style still sound like Joes former band. This short 4 track EP shows promise and has a couple of outstanding tracks in What Was Said On The Landing and Justice For The 96 My Rating - 7/10


Interpol - Interpol

My favourite band returned this year without Carlos Dengler (though he did play on the album). Interpol is an album which wont draw any new fans and could quite possibly draw some fans away. The album is very dark, Nothing on the album would immediately shout single with the exception of Barricade which almost doesn't fit in with the rest of the album. Whilst I'm a huge Interpol fan I'm not blind enough to say this album is fantastic or a masterpiece. It's certainly their weakest to date and a challenging listen. But there are some good songs on the album if you give it time. My Rating - 6/10


O. Children - O. Children

Another new band i've stumbled across recently thanks to a friend are the London band O. Children. The album is brilliant. They have the sound of White Lies. Lead singer Tobias O’Kandi strong haunting voice may have you hiding behind the couch however! I seriously recommend checking them out. If you're a fan of White Lies or love the whole post punk movement they will be your cup of tea!

My Rating - 8/10


Northern Soul


Listening to:

Manic Street Preachers - Postcards From A Young Man - Some Kind Of Nothingness

Bombay Bicycle Club - Flaws

About a year has passed since I Had The Blue But I Shook Them Loose launched relatively unknowns Bombay Bicycle Club right into the limelight. The young London band have returned with their second album Flaws and it's something which many will be surprised by.

Flaws is a completely acoustic album, What does that mean for the future of the band? Flaws certainly isn't a concept album so it begs the question of which direction they're going to take in future.

The album was released and the band are currently touring the country in some less than traditional venues you'd expect a rock band to play. The Sage in Gateshead or St Pauls Church in Birmingham for example. Whichever direction they're taking they're really getting behind this current project, temporary or permanent.

Enough small talk. There are some really beautiful songs on this album. Title track Flaws is one of the most beautiful songs I've heard this year, it's so minimalistic in it's set up (as is the whole album) One acoustic guitar and two vocals. The song is played softly but delivered powerfully from Jack and Lucy Rose, the two compliment each other superbly.

Listeners will recognise Dust On The Ground from their previous release as well as Ivy & Gold which was released by the band in may. Some other numbers my sound familiar too. Fairytale Lullaby is a cover of John Martyn whilst Swansea is a stunning cover of Joanna Newsom.

Now you start to see why the band have released a completely stripped down bare album. It doesn't stop there either, The way jack plays My God sounds chillingly like Dylans Moonshine Blues. If these are the artists Jack is listening to and the genre the band are interested in, it seems to make perfect sense that the follow up is Acoustic and not electric.

After this release I am eagerly waiting the band to follow up, what will be next? Nu-Metal or Country!? Joking aside of course, this album if nothing else celebrates the diversity of the band. whilst they're still growing and still learning, they're showing they are more than a one trick pony. The Futures bright even if this album will split fans.

7/10

Stand out tracks:

Rinse Me Down
Dust On The Ground
Fairytale Lullaby
My God
Flaws
Swansea

Northern Soul

listening to:

Bombay Bicycle Club - Flaws - Flaws

Lissie - Catching A Tiger

Coming to the airwaves near you.

Lissie is exciting and Catching A Tiger is a strong debut album; one you'd be hard pushed to want more from. Her vocals seem effortless and certainly, watching the duet she did with Ellie Goulding you can witness just how strong she is

Catching A Tiger promises some mid-western bluesy, country tones and it doesn't fail to deliver. Her talent is evident merely seconds into Record Collector fitting nicely alongside pots and pans clatter. Her effortless, laid back vocal strikes clear through the mêlée despite the rough and ready undertones ending in with a feeling of emotional exhaustion. She's good, real good.

Oh Mississippi, written together with Ed Harcourt is simply haunting, capturing that "out west" feel that is promised by her appearance - it's not hard to imagine floating down the Mississippi towards that dusty sunset.
Everywhere I Go could be criticised as being bland were it not for her soaring voice. The understated melody paves the way for a vocal that pulls the goosebumps up on your arms - for those who argue the song doesn't go anywhere, you're wrong her voice is right on the money.

Catching A Tiger will no doubt be a massive debut for this Illinois girl and one can only hope she doesn't fall into the pit of blandness. It seems others have seen the capacity for her to be the next Sheryl Crowe and that just won't do.

She's an antidote to Gaga and a welcome one.

~SouthernHeart

Listening to: Lissie - Little Lovin'

Feeder - Renegades

Grant Nicholas and Taka Hirose have had quite a hectic year for so many different reasons.

Drummer Mark Richardson left to reunite with his former band Skunk Anansie, Feeder used their alter ego Renegades to promote new tracks and now the band have now released their 7th album!

Called.... yep, Renegades.

Grant made no secret during The Renegades tours that the side project was to be an intimate afair with diehard fans. No Hits were played at these shows, Instead the band sampled new music which was more raw, more electric and, some would say more of what the band are about.

The same mindset has been followed up with the new album. Gone are the acoustics, gone are the ballards. If you're looking for Feeling A Moment or Just The Way I'm Feeling - you won't find them here.

To get a feel of the album I believe you're going to have to go back to early Feeder, perhaps as far back to Yesterday Went Too Soon. Renegades starts out as raw and electic as they come, White Lines, Call Out, Renegades and Sentimental push firmly what this album is about, the same energy is present throughout.

I don't usually single out songs I dislike but I couldn't let this album review go without a little note about This Town. The album on a whole has grown on me the more i've played it but This Town has probably had the opposite affect! Something about Nicholas barking lyrics, It just doesn't work for me. It's probably the only genuine poor song on the album.

However it's more of an annoyance than a concern as the rest of the album plays out nicely. City In A Rut is a paricularly good song and maybe my favourite of the album.

Does it measure up to 2008's Sileny Cry? No but Renegades is still a good album. Fans of Feeder/Renegades will recognise a lot of the material on the album. 5 of the tracks are from the two EP's which the band brought out exclusive to those fans who attended Renegades gigs. if you liked what you heard there then that alone would suggest you will like this album.

7/10

Stand out tracks:
White Lines
Call Out
Renegades
Sentimental
City In A Rut


Northern Soul

Listening to:
Feeder - Yesterday Went Too Soon - Radioman