British Sea Power:
Machineries Of Joy:
Rough Trade:
Out Now:
8/10
The re-assuring sound of British Sea Power returns with this, their sixth full-length album and perhaps their most consistent since 2008's "Do You Like Rock Music?". Recorded in their home-town of Brighton, Machineries of Joy is an altogether less bombastic beast than "Valhalla Dancehall" and as such is a friendlier album to take home with you.
The title-track starts proceedings with an assured canter and a nifty hook, all topped off with strings and a clockwork click-track beyond the usual indie-by-numbers drums and rhythm. Great start. The following K-Hole is a rather more visceral affair with its 'staring down the cannon' motif repeated throughout, making the whole thing sound like Radiohead circa Electioneering or 2+2=5. Elements of their eerie soundtrack work permeate the likes of Hail Holy Queen and the gorgeous What You Need The Most, while their more boisterous side is once again revealed on Monsters Of Sunderland, perhaps the album's weakest moment.
For me, the album's final few songs are nothing less than triumphant in places, especially the graceful Radio Goddard and the mesmeric last track, When a Warm Wind Blows Through The Grass, though lord knows what your man Yan is harping on about. Frankly, it doesn't matter - Machineries of Joy is comprised of an atmospheric grandeur that's essential enough.
Machineries Of Joy:
Rough Trade:
Out Now:
8/10
The title-track starts proceedings with an assured canter and a nifty hook, all topped off with strings and a clockwork click-track beyond the usual indie-by-numbers drums and rhythm. Great start. The following K-Hole is a rather more visceral affair with its 'staring down the cannon' motif repeated throughout, making the whole thing sound like Radiohead circa Electioneering or 2+2=5. Elements of their eerie soundtrack work permeate the likes of Hail Holy Queen and the gorgeous What You Need The Most, while their more boisterous side is once again revealed on Monsters Of Sunderland, perhaps the album's weakest moment.
For me, the album's final few songs are nothing less than triumphant in places, especially the graceful Radio Goddard and the mesmeric last track, When a Warm Wind Blows Through The Grass, though lord knows what your man Yan is harping on about. Frankly, it doesn't matter - Machineries of Joy is comprised of an atmospheric grandeur that's essential enough.