Flynndie Reviews #52: Top 10 albums of 2014

Written 6th December 2014

Top 10 Albums of 2014

 

So as the jingle of Christmas Bells is nigh on the horizon the start of December also signals the close of 2014 and that time of the year where I try and put together some sort of list of my favourite albums from the past 12 months.  It has to be said 2014 really has been a ‘Cracker’ for fans of Indie and Alternative music and I’ve found myself really enjoying a lot of new records this year from both old and new bands and this has probably been the most difficult in the four years I’ve been doing these reviews to rank this year’s albums, so needless to say any records in this year’s top ten I would highly recommend if you previously missed them.

So put on your dancing shoes and pack your air guitars as we head out on tour and check out 10 of the top albums from 2014.

#10. Reverend and the Makers – ThirtyTwo (Released 24th February)

February saw the release of the fourth album from Sheffield’s own Reverend and the Makers with their latest record ‘ThirtyTwo’.  The album picks-up well from their previous album ‘@Reverend_Makers’ with a more upbeat feel and vibe from the lively, suggestive innuendo opener ‘Detonator’, to some more chilled-out Dance (‘I-Spy’) while ‘The Devil’s Radio’ and ‘Different Trains’ are laced with witty lyrics from The Reverend himself, Jon McLure, before the album closes with solid single ‘The Only One’ followed by a hard, banging dance tune ‘Your Girl’.

Recommended Tracks: ‘Detonator’, ‘I Spy, ‘The Only One’

Personal Favourite Track: ‘Your Girl’ - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WgJcilSxXbo   

#9. Maxïmo Park – Too Much Information (Released 3rd February)

February also saw the return of Newcastle’s energetic, Indie pop-pickers Maxïmo Park with their fifth record ‘Too Much Information’.  Possibly the band’s most diverse album to-date ‘Too Much Information’ saw the band return with their familiar, frantic guitar tracks (‘Give, Get, Take’, ‘Her Name was Audrey’), to subtle, lo-fi electronica (‘Brain Cells’), the jangly 'Lydia, the ink will never dry', a gentle sprinkling of soft, tender moments (‘Leave this Island’, ‘My Bloody Mind’) also thrown in with some playful, groovy numbers (‘Drinking Martinis’, ‘Midnight on the Hill’) which in all saw another fine album added to Maxïmo Park’s back-catalogue.

Recommended Tracks: ‘Give, Get, Take’, ‘Brain Cells’, ‘My Bloody Mind’

Personal Favourite Track: ‘Lydia, the ink will never dry’ - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8P3SWta0-xw

#8. Nick Mulvey – First Mind (Released 12th May)

If you’re a fan of laid-back, stripped-down acoustic tracks then ‘First Mind’ the debut record from Nick Mulvey is recommended listening.  A beautifully crafted album, laced with charm ‘First Mind’ demonstrates Nick’s vast range of styles while armed with an acoustic guitar featuring charming, gentle pop ballads (‘Fever to the Form’ and the wonderful ‘Meet Me There’), to the tropically sounding ‘Juramidam’ and intricately picked guitar rhythms on ‘Curcurucu’ and ‘Venus’, this is truly a beautiful debut album from a genuinely talented guitarist.
 

Recommended Tracks: ‘Juramidam’, ‘Fever to the Form’, ‘Curcurucu’ 

Personal Favourite Track: ‘Meet Me There’ - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KHqsz81L_jI

#7. Royal Blood – Royal Blood (Released 25th August)

Back in March I was lucky enough to go and see this year’s NME Tour and second on the bill that night was this Brighton duo Royal Blood.  I didn’t know what to expect from this two-piece at the time but after watching them that night, they reminded me a little of another famous two-piece the ‘White Stripes’ but more so I was also impressed with their intense, heavy-rock sound also reminding me somewhat of early sounding Muse and Led Zeppelin.  The band’s eponymous debut album didn’t disappoint either and despite its short running-time of 33 minutes, its more than enough for the band’s large sounding, heavy-bluesy rock to deliver a short-sharp, ferocious kick to the balls and still leave you wanting more, with headline tours for the band now selling out within a matter of minutes.

Recommended Songs: ‘Out of the Black’, ‘Come On Over’, ‘Blood Hands’

Personal Favourite Track: ‘Little Monster’ - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ere2Mstl8ww

#6. Nine Black Alps – Candy for the Clowns (Released 21st April)

If it’s hard, industrialist rock you are looking for then ‘Candy for the Clowns’ by Manchester’s Nine Black Alps might just be the album for you.  Opening with full-on, no-nonsense rock ‘Novokaine’ to the coasting guitar sounds of ‘Blackout’ and the edgy cool, swaggering ‘Supermarket Clothes’ before industrialist live favourite ‘Patti’.  While midway through the record is the standout track for me featuring some bitter sweet rock on ‘Morning After’.  The band dabble with American college-rock on ‘Take Me Underground’ while the deluxe version of the album closes with a couple of raw acoustic numbers ‘You Don’t Need Me’ and ‘Power Failure'.  ‘Candy for the Clowns’ sees Nine Black Alps deliver another solid, underground guitar album with well-written tracks.

Recommended Tracks: ‘Novokaine’, ‘Supermarket Clothes’, ‘Patti’

Personal Favourite Track: ‘Morning After’ - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bMbC1DgSzrw   

#5. The Rifles – None the Wiser (Released 27th January)

For ‘None the Wiser’ to only be in 5th-place in this list shows some of the quality albums it has been up against this year, as for me this album saw The Rifles really back on top-form.  Returning with some brillantly, fun and catchy mod-rock tracks with openers ‘Minute Mile’ and ‘Heebie Jeebies’, it was perhaps an early indication the band were returning more to their sound of debut album ‘No Love Lost’.  However ‘None the Wiser’ also showcased the band’s sound maturing with the dreamy, acoustic sounds of ‘You Win Some’ and the assured number ‘The Hardest Place to Find Me’ before finishing with epic closer ‘Under and Over’ and this album set the bar high immediately from the start of 2014.

Recommended Songs: ‘Minute Mile’, ‘Heebie Jeebies’, ‘You Win Some’

Personal Favourite Track: ‘Go Lucky’ - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nZTkWuBOzNU

#4. Interpol – El Pintor (Released 8th September)

September saw the return of one of New York’s finest Interpol with their 5th studio album ‘El Pintor’, Spanish for ‘The Painter’ but also doubling as an anagram of the band’s name.  Released 4-years after their eponymous fourth album, for me ‘El Pintor’ saw Interpol back on top form.  Building with a tender guitar-riff and Paul Bank’s distinct vocals ‘All the Rage Back Home’ is a great opener which slowly builds into a full crescendo of a solid guitar track.  The band are noted for their post-punk, brooding guitar sound with intricate guitar riffs found here on ‘Same Town, New Story’ and there are further fine examples here with ‘My Desire’ and standout number ‘My Blue Supreme’.  ‘Anywhere’ and ‘Ancient Ways’ finds the band hitting back with some great full-on guitar rock, and brooding album closer ‘Twice As Hard’ is one of my favourite closing Interpol tracks since ‘Leif Erikson’ from debut album ‘Turn on the Bright Lights’.

Recommended Tracks: ‘All the Rage Back Home’, ‘Anywhere’, ‘My Blue Supreme’

Personal Favourite Track: ‘Same Town, New Story’ - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NZf6OU28e8A

#3. Howler – World of Joy (Released 24th March)

Early Spring saw the return of young Minneapolis upstarts Howler with their second album ‘World of Joy’.   Lead-singer Jordan Gatesmith described this album’s sound as “supposed to be almost like a jukebox at some sloppy bar in Minneapolis” and that really hits the nail on the head with this record.  From the Thin Lizzy sounding opener ‘Al’s Corral’ making a great start to the album, we hear the band sounding like The Ramones on ‘Drip’ and capturing a raw, garage-rock sound with a number of tracks such as ‘Yacht Boys’ and the fun guitar-rock of ‘Louise’.  For me it’s the jangly guitar sounds of ‘Don’t Wanna’ and ‘The itch that creeps through my skull’ that are the standout tracks of this record surely influenced by The Smiths and this second album really saw Howler mature and show a diverse range of tracks they can create on this brilliant record which I’ve had on constant repeat throughout 2014.

Recommended Tracks: ‘Al’s Corral’, ‘Don’t Wanna’, ‘Louise’

Personal Favourite Track: ‘The itch that creeps through my skull’ (live) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nQIdb70SelA 

#2. Catfish and the Bottlemen – The Balcony (Released 15th September)

With their full-on explosive, rock ‘n’ roll sound ‘The Balcony’ was the excellent debut album from Catfish and the Bottlemen.  Four young, cocky but fun lads originally hailing from Llandudno, Wales these boys have spent a good number of years dedicated to live touring and honing their explosive rock sound.  With thoughtful opener ‘Homesick’ setting the pace, this quickly gets build on with the excellent track ‘Kathleen’ which I previously described in my review of this album as “Indie-Rock tracks go this is nigh-on fucking perfection”.  ‘Cocoon’ and ‘Pacifer’ further demonstrate the fun, cool, loud rock sounds of this band with infectious guitar riffs and rhythms and lead-singer Van McCann’s distinct, crisp vocals throughout.  The hits continue with further incredibly tight rock tracks ‘Business’ and the up-tempo ‘26’ before closing with the brilliantly cool live favourites ‘Sidewinder’ and ‘Tyrants’. The Balcony features 11 easy-listening but incredibly well-written and exciting rock tracks that will surely see Catfish and the Bottlemen go onto much bigger things. 

Recommended Songs: ‘Homesick’, ‘Cocoon’, ‘Pacifier’, ‘Sidewinder’

Personal Favourite Track: ‘Kathleen’ - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xrrcVxnjJO8 
  

#1. The Twilight Sad – Nobody Wants To Be Here and Nobody Wants To Leave (Released 27th October)

Returning with their fourth album this year were the distinctly Scottish band The Twilight Sad with the incredibly, beautifully crafted ‘Nobody Wants To Be Here and Nobody Wants To Leave’ and finds itself in the #1 spot on my albums of the year list.  Returning with ‘There’s a girl in the corner’ this saw the band retain their brooding, edgy guitar sound while ‘Last January’ featured a more upbeat yet haunting guitar rhythm with the beautifully crafted tales lead-singer James Graham masterly paints on this album.  A dark, thoughtful yet tender and gentle record throughout laced with charming, hauntingly sounding fairy-tales (‘Pills I Swallow’) we also have an agonisingly beautiful standout track with ‘It Never Was the Same’.  This is yet another finely crafted, edgy, haunting record by The Twilight Sad and is one of the standout albums of 2014 for me.

Recommended Tracks: ‘There’s A Girl in the Corner’, ‘Last January’, ‘Pills I Swallow’

Personal Favourite Track: ‘It Never was the Same’ - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yEMA2DYe2zk

 
So that covers some of my favourite albums of 2014. Many thanks for taking the time to read and if you have any recommendations of records for me to check out as well, feel free to leave suggestions in the comments section below or send them across on Twitter.

Here’s to more Alternative, Indie and Rock music in 2015!

Flynny

Flynndie Reviews: #45 Howler - World of Joy

Written 26th March 2014:

Howler – World of Joy

The Band: Jordan Gatesmith (vocals, guitar), Ian Nygaard (guitar), Max Petrek (bass, keyboards), Rory MacMurdo (drums)

So today’s review sees the long-awaited return of US Minneapolis-based 4-piece Howler who are finally making their return after seemingly falling off the face of the planet since releasing their enjoyable, surfer and slasher-based style of garage-rock with 2012 debut album ‘America Give Up’ (previously reviewed in Flynndie Reviews #22).  Now suddenly seemingly out of nowhere the band are returning on the Rough Trade label, with this ‘World of Joy’ out this week but has the long break done the young-upstarts a ‘world of good’ or created a ‘world of pain’ with this their second full album?

World of Joy

1. Al’s Corral

2. Drip
3. Don’t Wanna
4. Yacht Boys
5. In the Red
6. World of Joy
7. Louise
8. Here’s The Itch That Creeps Through My Skull  
9. Indictment
10. Aphorismic Wasteland Blues

Opening with the fuzzy, upbeat and rocky guitar rhythm of ‘Al’s Corral’ this track sees Howler return to their light-hearted but distinct garage-rock style which was a major feature of their debut album while Jordan teases with lines “I won’t say yes but I might say maaaay-be/If I drink and I ask around/It’s the only place for me”.  It’s a fun, energetic opener with a nice hint of Thin Lizzy underlying the track and gets the record of to a fine start.  ‘Drip’ is another full-on garage-rock number, featuring plenty of layers of guitar distortion used throughout, with a staple guitar-rhythm that ‘Up the Bracket’ by The Libertines was built on and a raucous Ramones-esque repeated chorus “Drip/Drip/Put him on a drip”. 

Meanwhile third-track ‘Don’t Wanna’ is a real standout and somewhat calms the pace of the album with some dreamy but still upbeat, semi-acoustic guitar-pop featuring some of my favourite lines on the album “You don’t have to be anyone if you don’t want to…You don’t have to listen to The Smiths if you don’t want to”, which ironically, or perhaps more so intentionally, is followed with a delightful, jangly Smiths-like guitar solo.  For the record I would actually highly recommend going back and listening to the full The Smiths back-catalogue and certainly feel that actually this third track is the band’s nod of approval to the legendary Manchester band.  ‘Yacht Boys’ opens with a haunting, western guitar-solo backed by an 100mph guitar-riff and even faster drums from new band member Rory.  Another no-nonsense, raucous garage-rock track with an underlying menace to it, this is what The Strokes would sound like on acid, and also reminds me of forgotten psychedelic rockers 80’s Matchbox B-Line Disaster.

‘In the Red’ follows next and is another rocky, upbeat affair and smacks of rhythms of The Clash and The Ramones with a dreamy chorus “No I won’t do you no wrong/No I won’t do you any harm”, it’s another good fun, surfer-rock track and really shows how tight the band are playing here. Title-track ‘World of Joy’ is a much more, slower and menacing affair, as guitars and a groovy bass-line chug away at the track like a runaway train, while Jordan’s voice has an effect used on it on this track making it his voice much softer and understated and despite being the title-track, this is a much more different sound from the band than previously and perhaps the darkest track on the album so far.  ‘Louise’ is another much more upbeat and incredibly catchy tune; again with Libertines\Strokes sounding guitars racing through its veins while Jordan croons about the song’s protagonist “Louise/Oh Please/I wanna tell you I love you/But I know it’s not enough!”  It’s an urgent and very instant track.  Not only is ‘Here’s the Itch that Creeps Through My Skull’ a barmy but brilliant track-title, but for me it’s another stand-out track on the record, with a dreamy, jangly guitar-riff at the heart of it.  Another track that’s sound again shows more than a subtle nod to The Smiths and again shows more great range on display on this album from these four young shit-kickin’ upstarts from Minnapolis.   

Initially percussion-driven with some hollering and wooo’s thrown-in ‘Indictment’ has a true US-college vibe about it, the perfect companion soundtrack for burning away and heading out on a long road-trip, with guitars and bass duelling right away before mid-way through the track, the song’s drops down a few gears “Well help me Jesus, right here on my search/I know I swear to you, I never burned down no church”, it’s another fun track with its tongue firmly placed in cheek.  Closing track ‘Aphorismic Wasteland Blues’ has a very retro, somewhat Beach Boys sounding vibe about it, bluesy, jolly and carefree it effortlessly closes the album all the time while showing off the cheeky-charm and talent of what Howler are all about.

So after seemingly disappearing of the face of the planet, Howler have actually gone away, honed their sound even more and delivered in my opinion a quality second album.  I always thought these young lads showed a lot of potential back in late 2011 with their ‘This One’s Different EP’ (also reviewed in Flynndie Reviews #19) and their early 2012 debut album ‘Amercia Give Up’ but I have to say I’ve listened to ‘World of Joy’ a few times now and am started to think this album is really starting to show these youngsters live up to their full potential.  You can see many rock ‘n’ roll influences with this record, ranging from the obvious Ramones, The Smiths and The Strokes, particularly with Jordan’s “don’t give a fuck, drawling vocals” drawing a similar comparison to early Julian Casablancas, but also to the more subtle Thin Lizzy and The Stooges.  I read a quote from lead-singer Jordan that the band’s aim with this record was “supposed to be almost like a jukebox at some sloppy bar in Minneapolis” and I think they really nail that sound with this record while giving the band quite a range of songs and a fun, tight, rocky record which I’ve overall been really impressed with and am going to award this one 8 “Itch’s Though My Skull” out of 10.  If you like stuff like The Libertines and The Strokes I would seriously recommend checking out this fantastic record.

In the Red
‘Flynny’

Track 3 ‘Don’t Wanna’

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=50QFJJQGTrs  

Track 9 ‘Indictment’

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hCGMoyF-a8M

Flynndie Reviews: #35 - Top 10 Albums of 2012 - Part 2

Written 7th December 2012:

Top 10 Albums of 2012 – Part 2

Ok, so following on from my last Blog here is the second part of my favourite 10 albums from 2012.  If you missed Part 1, fear not dear reader as you can still find the Blog here or by simply scrolling down the page to after this post.  However, if you did read Part 1, well firstly many thanks for the support and secondly I hope you enjoy reading Part 2 which, with air-guitars still at the ready, we shall jump straight into with a great up-and-coming young band hailing from The US-of-A, Minneapolis.

#5. Howler – America Give Up (Reviewed in Flynndie Reviews Blog #22 – 8/10)

Arriving on the scene in early January this year, young up-starts Howler released their debut album ‘America Give Up’.  Now long time readers may know I’m quite a fan of this bright, young band’s slasher, surfer-rock Indie style and this debut album certainly didn’t disappoint when it arrived.  With a collection of fast, catchy garage-rock tracks the band very much remind me of a lite version of The Strokes from the beach-party styled opener ‘Beach Sluts’ to ‘This One’s Different’ reminding me very much of the juke box from the old TV series ‘Happy Days’ (ask your parents kids!).  ‘Told You Once’ continues the classic 60’s Diner theme, while uniquely titled ‘Pythagorean Fearem’ reminds me a lot of the dark, sinister sound the band ‘80’s Matchbox B-Line Disaster’ were famed for.  Throw in more fast, paced garage-rock with incredibly catchy tracks ‘Wailing (Making Out) and excellent closer ‘Black Lagoon’ and what we have here are a fun, exciting young band, which if you’re a fan on band’s like The Strokes, The Vaccines and to an extend The Libertines and missed this early album from 2012, then I would highly recommend it!

Recommended Tracks: ‘Beach Sluts’, ‘Wailing (Making Out)’, ‘Told You Once, ‘Black Lagoon’

Personal Favourite Track: ‘This One’s Different’ - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2bWBdBMffoU

Howler brought their Surfer, Garage-Rock sound to The Garage back in January

 

#4. Maximo Park – The National Health (Reviewed in Flynndie Reviews Blog #26 – 9/10)

Our next stop on this journey through 2012 see’s us arrive in the North-East; Newcastle to be exact with the long-awaited return of Maximo Park and their 4th studio album ‘The National Health’.  And in my opinion it was well worth the wait as ‘The National Health’ saw the band on real top-form this year, really pushing at the boundaries of the fast, paced guitar sound the band are famed for.  From opening piano ballad ‘When I was Wild’, a surprising start to the record but sets it up nicely, we then had the more ‘traditional’ Maximo Park guitar sound on title-track ‘The National Health’ and the sound continued to be found on tracks ‘Until the Earth would Open’ and ‘Wolf Among Men’, which I always find I can’t help but dance to every time I hear it.  Also featuring more, ‘darker’ electro-pop on previous single ‘Hips and Lips’ and ‘Banlieue’; we also then had the sweeter, more romantic side of Maximo Park on tracks ‘The Undercurrents’, ‘Reluctant Love’ and ‘Unfamiliar Places’.  It’s fair to say the band really challenged themselves and packed quite an impressive range of tracks into a 40-minute record and again this has been another record I’ve found myself listening to a lot this year.

Recommended Tracks: ‘Hips and Lips’, ‘The Undercurrents’, ‘Reluctant Love’, ‘Wolf Among Men’

Personal Favourite Track: ‘The National Health’ - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AiVxX3r5GhI

#3. The Twilight Sad – No One Can Ever Know (Reviewed in Flynndie Reviews Blog #24 – 9/10)

We next head further North still to Kilsyth, Scotland as The Twilight Sad released their 3rd album in February this year with ‘No One Can Ever Know’, the follow-up to their fantastic second album ‘Forget the Night Ahead’.  The distinctly Scottish band returned with another collection of dark, intense and cryptic songs with a generous dose of synths, electronics and even accordions applied to tracks throughout the record.  Each track acts very much as a ‘chapter’ through the record, ranging from opener ‘Alphabet’ setting the more synth-based direction of this album, to the more traditional guitar tracks by the band in the momentum building and fast paced guitar track ‘Dead City’ and then the excellently told tale by third track ‘Sick’.  More synth-heavy tracks appear on the album in the form of ‘Don’t Move’ and ‘Don’t Look at Me’, while we have two excellent Indie-dance tracks closing the album with Joy Division-esque track ‘Another Bed’ and the excellent, building closing track ‘Kill It in the Morning’.  The Twilight Sad seem to remain another very underground Indie band but their style of dark, cryptic and intense guitar and synth-based tracks have a real charm about them and ‘No One Can Ever Know’ is yet another brillant album by a band I would highly recommend to check out and especially go see live.

Recommended Tracks: ‘Alphabet’, ‘Sick’, ‘Don’t Move’, ‘Don’t Look at Me’

Personal Favourite Track(s):
‘Dead City’ - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5wi5iyxGsIQ
‘Kill It in the Morning’ - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nn8jcPXYc1g (Live)

The Twilight Sad stormed through an intense set at The Borderline earlier this year

#2. Two Door Cinema Club - Beacon (Reviewed in Flynndie Reviews Blog #30 – 9/10)

From Kilsyth, Scotland, we next travel to Bangor, Northern Ireland as September saw Two Door Cinema Club release their much anticipated second album ‘Beacon’ the follow-up to their successful debut album ‘Tourist History’.  ‘Beacon’ was released the same week as The Vaccines album ‘Come of Age’ and while the latter may have won that particular chart battle that week, I’ve found myself listening to this album slightly more of the two over the course of the year.  A record laced with the band’s now more familiar fast-paced, guitar and synth pop tracks this album really builds on the band’s debut record for me.  Each track tends to unfold a tale through lead singer Alex Tremble’s falsetto voice and lyrics; this is particularly evident on tracks such as opener ‘Next Year’ and previous single ‘He Sleeps Alone’.  Some of the tracks on the album are just brilliantly put together and build slowly then explode lavishly bold in their style of music and vocals see ‘Sun’, ‘Settle’ and particularly ‘The World is watching (with Valentina)’ for examples of this and overall this has been a highly enjoyable album.

Recommended Songs: ‘Sun’, ‘Sleep Alone’, The World is watching (with Valentina)

Personal Favourite Track(s):
‘Someday’ - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y08Y15ik5pg (Live at Reading Festival 2012)
‘Settle’ - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=seQX4m2gYNE (Live at Brixton Academy)

#1. Bloc Party - Four (Reviewed in Flynndie Reviews Blog #29 – 8/10)

So the final date on our tour of 2012 sees us arrive in London as Bloc Party returned with their cunningly named fourth album ‘Four’ also ironically released four years after their previous album ‘Intimacy’.  There was a lot of speculation as to what direction the band would take with this album, after their very rocky, Indie-based debut ‘Silent Alarm, to the more ‘chilled-out’ ‘A Weekend in the City’ and the previously mentioned ‘Initmacy’ which showed more of a nod to the Indie Dance scene.  I think what we got with ‘Four’ from Bloc Party was actually a blend of all three of their previous albums to date, making for a unique, eclectic range of tracks from intense, guitar-heavy Indie rock on tracks ‘3x3’, recent single ‘Kettling’ and ‘V.A.L.I.S.’, to the more serene, softer tracks such as the banjo-featuring ‘Real Talk’ and the beautifully sublime ‘Day Four’, to the post-punk sound found on closing track ‘We’re Not Good People’.  Throw in some dance-vibes on comeback single ‘Octopus’ and the excellent and urgent ‘Team A’, plus a couple of old-school sounding Bloc Party bonus tracks in ‘Mean’ and ‘Leaf Skeleton’ on the deluxe version of the album and basically this album formed a great return from the band.  I said at the time I reviewed this, the album felt like ‘a grower’ and this has certainly proved to be the case for me during 2012.

Recommended Tracks: ‘Octopus’, ‘Day Four’, ‘Real Talk’, ‘We’re Not Good People’

Personal Favourite Track(s):
‘Kettling’ - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rk-J1zT7TfQ   
‘Team-A’’ - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4tRK1iAIMT8 (Live at Koko)

So that concludes my Top 10 albums of 2012, I hope you’ve enjoyed my selections and if you have any good recommendations of albums I may have missed this year and are not on my list, feel free to send me some recommendations across on Twitter or leave them in the comments section below.  Many thanks for taking the time to read the Blog and here’s looking forward to some great Indie and alternative music in 2013!
 
Rocking into 2013

‘Flynny’

Flynndie Reviews - Blog #22: Howler - America Give Up

Written 16th January 2012:

Howler – America Give Up

The Band: Jordan Gatesmith (vocals, guitar), Max Petrek (keyboards), Brent Mayes (drums), Ian Nygaard (guitar).

So for today’s review, regular readers may notice I previously gave a taster of today’s band, Howler, recently when I previously reviewed their debut release the ‘This One’s Different EP’ back in mid-November in Blog #19. As I stated in that piece I very much fell for the band’s garage-rock, surfer-style EP instantly and have regularly been giving the EP a spin since its release last August and in doing so had built myself up high-expectations for the release of their full-debut album and today’s review subject ‘America Give Up’. I won’t cover too much on the band’s background as I previously did this in the Blog #19 for the ‘This One’s Different EP’, so let’s dive right-in and see how ‘America Give Up’ sounds:

Running Order

1. Beach Sluts
2. Back To The Grave
3. This One's Different
4. America
5. Too Much Blood
6. Wailing (Making Out)
7. Pythagorean Fearem
8. Told You Once
9. Back Of Your Neck
10. Free Drunk
11. Black Lagoon

Kicking off with a nice ‘beach-party’ guitar-riff, one that those that have heard ‘This One’s Different’ will be initially surprised that things are off to a slow start here, however, that soon quickly changes 30 seconds into the track, as the fast, frantic garage-rock that appeared on their debut EP crashes in on the album at 100mph, like a 20ft wave on the beaches of California with opening track ‘Beach Sluts’. The track is an early indication of the ‘surfer-type-vibe' that the band creates with their sound throughout the record. ‘Back to the Grave’ slows things down after the frantic opener, but has a very, deep bellowing sound to it courtesy of thunderous drumming from Brent Mayes and Jordan singing in a more deep voice on this track in particular. The track features a nice rocky-riff after each verse and overall complements the opening track very well on the album. Track 3 ‘This One’s Different’ as previously mentioned was the title track of the band’s debut EP, and quite rightly so in my opinion, as it’s one of the standout tracks on the album with its fast, catchy garage-rock sound, one of which I previously compared to sounding like early material by The Strokes but only if they had been up taking illicit substances through the night! This is probably the first most ‘instant’ track on the album for me and certainly a type of sound the band captures so well.

Next up we have ‘America’ and much like 2nd-track ‘Back to the Grave’ the band opt for another more ‘relaxed’ rock track here while still maintaining a very unique sound for it with the type of echo effect used on Jordan’s voice here and the simple, relaxed backing guitar riff used throughout the song to nice effect. ‘Too Much Blood’ casually turns up next on the record, with a slowed down electric guitar hand-holding Jordan’s vocals on this track and haunting-like guitars turning up in the middle of the song too, this is probably the most ‘menacing’ sounding track on album, which is generally fast-paced and upbeat throughout, though it’s reassuring to know that the band has these type of tracks in their locker also.

Things get a lot more upbeat and bouncy with the track ‘Wailing (Making Out)’, which was previously titled the excellent ‘You like White Women I like Cigarettes’ on their debut EP, though I’m guessing the band may have been requested to change this title for the album’s release hence new title ‘Wailing (Making Out)’. With a melody throughout the track that smacks of college students having a blast at a beach-party, this is again another more instant track on the record and really lives up to the surfer-vibe of the record as previously mentioned earlier. I can understand more why the title of the track was changed as lead-singed Jordon belts out towards the end of the track “I’m so tired of making out!” and this is another real standout track on the record for me. Track 7 ‘Pythagorean Fearem’ one of the more unusually titled tracks on the album, alludes more to the darker, menacing sound the band are capable of creating, with early parts of the verse reminding my very much of the sound the band ‘80’s Matchbox B-Line Disaster’ were famed for, which is by no means a bad thing at all.

‘Told You Once’ is the 3rd and final track, that originally appeared on the bands debut EP and is another excellent track, with a more mellow feel to it and a backing acoustic guitar throughout. The band re-creates a sound that is usually found in movies of an easy-going 60’s Diner in my opinion despite somewhat downbeat lyrics “I wish there was something that I could do/Cause I hate myself more than I hate you” suggesting that the song implies a strain on couple’s relationship but this song has anything but a downbeat vibe about it and it is more likely you would just get caught up in the easy-flowing rhythm and sound of the track. Again it features, like many tracks on the album, simple yet catchy lyrics that you will soon find yourself singing along to without realising it (or maybe that is just me!)

‘Back of your Neck’ swoons along into the latter part of the album, with a nice opening guitar riff, and is possibly the most ‘surfer-vibe’ sounding and laidback track on the album overall and although I’ve used that comparison a lot throughout this review, it is more of a complement to the band’s unique sound on this record rather than a criticism. ‘Free Drunk’ starts with the screech of guitar distortion, before jugging away as a guitar track that coasts along and fills the album nicely but is arguably perhaps the ‘weaker’ track of an overall strong album. And so our fast-paced, fun journey through the band’s debut album brings us to closing track ‘Black Lagoon’ and in my opinion it’s a cracker! Another, frantic guitar track played at rip-roaring pace, with a really catchy bridge and a proper 60’s guitar-riff throughout the 2nd verse of the track, it’s a great fun track to close what is overall a fun and enjoyable debut album from these 4 young lads from Minneapolis that should be enjoyed for the light-hearted romp of a record that it is!

So, overall I think this album is a great a debut effort from Howler. I had really high hopes for the record after the obscenely, excessive amount of plays I had previously given their debut EP ‘This One’s Different’. The album overall lives up to my high expectations, although I felt it was a shame that they left off the opening track ‘For All Concern’ from their debut EP, as I always thought it was an amazing opening track. I also personally preferred the vocals used on the EP version of ‘This One’s Different’ however the vocals used here still don’t stop the track itself from being anything other than great and both of these points are minor criticisms. I think this is a great album for the band to introduce themselves to the UK Indie scene and I’m sure fans of bands like The Strokes, The Vaccines and even to an extent The Libertines will really like the record that Howler have brought to the table here and I’m going to award this album a very strong 8 Howls out of 10. Even if you didn’t hear the debut EP I’d still recommend give this album a go and would certainly recommend trying to catch the band play ‘live’ in the UK over the next few months while they are still playing smaller venues as I can only see bigger things coming up for Howler going forward into 2012!

Never Giving Up ‘Flynny’

Track 3 ‘This One’s Different’
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7b7SlJfgpnM

Track 8 I Told You Once’
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lKkcBb4EFQs