Review: Boxer Rebellion – Union

Before we begin, a heartwarming tale:

In 2003, The Boxer Rebellion looked set for big things. They played ahead of Keane at Glastonbury, signed with Britpop supremo Alan McGee and won themselves a support slot with The Killers.

But just as things were taking off, lead singer Nathan Nicholson became very ill and the band was forced to suspend all activities, including touring.

Fast-forward two years and the band finally released debut album Exits to a very favourable critical reception and, as before, they looked destined for success.
Just two weeks later, their record label imploded leaving the band with no label, no backing and no money.

Now here comes the heartwarming bit.

In January of this year, after lead single Evacuate was made available for free on iTunes, self-financed second album Union, became an overnight success. It shot up the download charts and just five days after release, it was number one in the US and number four in the UK. In it’s first week it outsold Kings of Leon, Coldplay and MGMT. It didn’t just match them, it outsold them.

Union got it’s long-awaited physical release on this side of the pond in September and to commemorate this (and the fact that it’s really very good) I thought I’d check it out.

Let me be straight with you, Union is excellent. And I’m so pleased. Reaching the top of any chart requires some kind of quality control, but it would’ve been very easy for the all the hype to get a little out of hand. Thankfully, it justifies itself with room to spare.

Union sets it’s stall out from the very beginning, making clear from the moment the galloping drums of opening track Flashing Red Light Means Go enter, we’re set for lush, arena-sized rock that recalls both Sigur Rós and Radiohead in their prime.

Acoustic layers eventually give way to a enchanting falsetto of “Tell us why you’re leaving” before all too soon we’re onto second track Move On. Signature galloping drums signify more of the same, which is really no bad thing. Lead singer Nicholson sings an aggressive refrain of “move on”, cleverly positioned in contrast to the previous track’s sentiment but proving no less effective.

Lead single Evacuate is quite easily the stand out track, and features more than one killer hook. After an unsure and lamenting verse, the chorus heralds a realisation. Jumping up a gear, Nicholson sings:

“Wait. When there’s nothing left to waste.
On a promise I can make.
You don’t want no one this way. Wait”

No longer unsteady, the singer knows what is required. The music straightens and fills out to form an excellent backdrop for the strained melodies.

Album tracks Misplaced, Semi Automatic and album closer Silent Movie, show a darker side to the band, allowing the exceptional lyrics to realise their true potential before almost always drawing to a thumping and, there’s that word again, arena-sized close.

It must be said that by the time we reach seventh track, Forces, the galloping drums begin to get tiresome and, despite the track’s killer chorus, make the song sound more predictable and laboured than perhaps it should.

Similarly, the guitars are superb for the most part, but as we move towards the album’s conclusion, there is a growing feeling of déjà vu that places tracks such as Semi Automatic in the bracket labeled ‘Album Tracks’. If the song were stripped to it’s bare bones, this would seem a wholly unfair assessment but, as before, there is a slight underlying sense of autopilot.

However, these are small and insignificant points. The soaring melodies and enchanting falsettos more than make up for any shortcomings and lyrically, the band are at a stage that many bands twice their age have yet to reach.

Frantic, dark and heart-wrenching all at the same time, it’s not difficult to see why Union propelled The Boxer Rebellion into the musical limelight and up the charts. Here is proof that maybe hard graft and top quality music can win through in the end.

Feeling heartwarmed yet? I certainly am.

Please visit them at: www.theboxerrebellion.com

Or buy on iTunes

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Rural Life - 'Yours, Eli' - Free Download Now Available

Further to my earlier review, I am delighted to say I can now offer a free download of Rural Life’s excellent track Yours, Eli.

It’s the third track taken from their debut EP, It Was Me, It Was You, It Was About Saying Goodbye, and is a great example of their simple arrangement and uncomplicated production allowing the song to shine through.

Make sure you check them out at myspace.com/clickclickbuzzbuzz - you won’t regret it.

Visit mainlygenius.tumblr.com to get it.

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(Audio) Simple Minds - Stars Will Lead The Way

Third track taken from the aforementioned LP, Graffiti Soul.

An example of a great melody that is complimented by sparkling guitar lines and excellent arrangment.

Listen on Tumblr - http://bit.ly/1jW9JQ

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Review: Simple Minds - Graffiti Soul

So Simple Minds are back with a new album, their first in twenty years. The first since they stopping making music after releasing decade defining hit, Don’t You (Forget About Me), in 1984. Right?

Well no, actually. Don’t You (Forget About Me) was released in 1984 but, after a cursory glance at one of the internet’s most reliable encyclopedias, it transpires that Simple Minds never split up or really ever stopped making albums.

Graffiti Soul is the latest offering from the Glaswegian band, their first since 2005’s Black & White 050505, and their 16th overall. That’s right, 16th.

From the moment album opener Moscow Underground swings into view, it’s clear this is group who are feeling re-invigorated and, while they may not have hit top gear yet, they’re enjoying it all the same.

What we get is a natural sounding album. It doesn’t overpower and is comfortable, clear and most of all exciting.
While some of the songs may lack the killer melodies, the guitars sparkle throughout and Jim Kerr’s familiar vocals sound as strong and engaging as they did all those years ago.

Lead single Rockets and follow up Stars Will Lead the Way are the standout tracks, and recall a sound that perhaps the band should be more recognized for.
Opening with an U2 type guitar riff, Rockets shows the band’s ability for a good pop arrangement, but also manages to keep an edge that maintains it’s rock credibility, whilst Stars Will Lead the Way has the hook that probably deserved a much higher chart placing than that which it obtained (#88 in Germany).
Light Travels is a bold song that takes us back to the mid 80s with subtle lyrics and confident drums, and is followed by Kiss and Fly, which has some of the cleverest guitar playing to be found on the album.

However, to say that this album is without fault would perhaps be rash. Tracks such as Blood Type O and This Is It are relegated towards the end of the record and despite good intentions, lack the grace and melody of other tracks. There’s a nagging feeling of incompletion that surrounds these tracks, the feeling that maybe the band were happy to make a decent album, rather than risk creating a bad one.

Nonetheless, Graffiti Soul is an excellent return and should be treated as such. It has more than enough quality to keep the older fans happy but contains the melody and grace that has Simple Minds sounding like they mean it again and deserves respect from a new generation of fans.
Despite there being over 30 years since we first heard from them, the band are showing no signs of letting up. With a newfound enthusiasm and an excellent return to form, I’m very much looking forward to next 30.

Visit them on - www.simpleminds.com

Or iTunes - http://bit.ly/3xYUmO

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(Audio) Rural Life - Yours, Eli

Third track taken from the aforementioned debut EP, It Was Me, It Was You, It Was About Saying Goodbye.

An example of simple arrangement and uncomplicated production, allowing the song to shine through


Listen on Tumblr - http://bit.ly/4rIvsC

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Review: Rural Life - It Was Me, It Was You, It Was About Saying Goodbye

Rural Life is a group who have been with me for a while but about whom I’ve never succeeded in writing. I’m ashamed to say that despite being on my iTunes for a little under five months, I never really allowed them a fair portion of listening time until recent weeks.
For those of you who’ve never had the pleasure it’s about time you bucked up your ideas.

It Was Me, It Was You, It Was About Saying Goodbye is the debut EP from the duo Rural Life (chief songwriter Andrew Chu and producer Alex Beitzke), and although it doesn’t immediately grab the listener as one might hope, it soon becomes difficult to turn off.
Opening track Mid-Autumn suggests a pop edge that lines the collection and doesn’t tie it up in complex guitar sounds or chord sequences. Although perhaps one of the weaker tracks, this and subsequent track Mountain Air allow the listener to adjust themselves to the lower octave vocals and appreciate the clever arrangements, that come into their own as the EP progresses.

However, it is not until track three, Yours, Eli that It Was Me… really comes into it’s own. A devastatingly simple chord sequence underpins the first verse before the track subtly builds into a short tale of love and loss, making full use of the album’s careful and smooth production.
From here, we move through the more upbeat numbers Oh! There It Is Right There with its nod to Jack Johnson and Life On Film, giving the ukulele another run out, before we are once again drawn into the sixth track, Firstborn.

Although initially not overly different from earlier tracks, it is soon clear that Firstborn has a melody that requires the listener to…well…listen.
Following the EP’s loose themes of departure, jealously and love, it talks of a Mother with her family (and firstborn child) and the jealously of not being a part of that. At it’s core it contains no more than five or six chords but it takes more than just a cursory glance to realize that this is all there is to it.

With the dial firmly set to ‘stripped back’ we move past shortest track, Sometimes and reach the EP’s closer Saying Goodbye.
Recalling the smooth electric guitar sounds of earlier track Yours, Eli, it sums the EP up nicely. Simple and clever production compliments the feeling of resolve and relief the track evokes. Not trying to end with flurry does the album no harm and succeeds in having the memorable effect that a barrage of guitars or vocals might have done.

Needing no showy vocals, no extra guitars or no over-the-top production techniques, It Was Me… shows a maturity and simplicity that is seldom seen in the age of the Arctic Monkeys, and tips it’s hat to releases by Bon Iver and Johnny Cash, while retaining it’s own sense of identity.

It’s by no means perfect, but shows enough potential that suggests that somewhere down the line, we might get something that will be approaching just that.
While some might argue it’s nothing you’ve not heard before, I would happily bet it’s something you’d like to hear again and again.


Visit them on MySpace: http://myspace.com/clickclickbuzzbuzz

Or iTunes:
http://bit.ly/Ag8J4

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(Audio) Kate Bush - And Dream of Sheep

Taken’ from the aforementioned album, Hounds of Love.

An example of a Kate Bush song that strips away the drum machines and samples, just leaving Bush singing at her best with only a piano for accompaniment.

Listen on Tumblr - http://bit.ly/1mSMz3

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