Cumbria’s favourite sons, Wild Beasts, returned this week with their latest offering, Smother – released on London’s trendsetting indie label Domino.
Forgive the rock cliché, but there’s a temptation for bands to tackle their ‘difficult third album’ with a drastic, sometimes clumsy change of musical direction and quite often achieve little more than a self-indulgent mess of a record. Thankfully, Smother is anything but. The band have pieced together a well-crafted, mysterious and utterly spellbinding album, which has quite rightly received gushing praise from the likes of The Guardian, NME, The Independent and just about every DJ worth their salt over at BBC6 Music.
Lion’s Share starts the record on a strangely introspective note, with a fragile piano melody, bolstered by a relentless bass-heavy synth. There’s an understated, melancholic vibe to the song which is made all the starker when it’s followed by Bed of Nails – a flamboyant declaration of sexual longing; complete with an infectious backbeat and fiddly guitar licks. What’s clear is just how comfortable Wild Beasts are to explore their own lyrical and musical pallets.
The landscape of this record is indeed varied, touching base with all the elements of indie, pop, electronica, 80s tinged synths, and dare I say it, even moments of chillwave. Yet, the band never outstay their welcome in any one particular genre. Every instrument is used sparingly, adding just the right dab of sonic texture where required– whether it’s the delicate guitar picking during the intro to End Come Too Soon or the unfussy plodding bassline to Loop the Loop. Wild Beasts have given the songs enough room to breath, without overcrowding the mix with extra guitars or percussion for the sake of it. It’s a confident move on their part, as each layer of sound now feels very necessary, and the record sounds meticulously thought-out as a result.
Plaudits should go to the album’s producer and engineer, Richard Formby. Every single note on the record is beautifully recorded and crystal clear in the mix. The close-mic’ed vocal tracks work especially well on tracks like Invisible and Burning, giving a warm, intimate feeling to the songs.
You’ll have to excuse me another cliché, as the phrase ‘headphones record’ is banded about fairly frequently these days – but Smother might just be the finest example I’ve heard for a good, long while. Without trying to sound too much like one of Hayden Thorpe’s lovelorn lyrics; lay back, turn out the lights, and enjoy.
[Rating: 4]
Stream the entire long player here:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/musicblog/2011/may/03/wild-beasts-smother-album-stream
