"It sounds like Robert Smith, Paul Weller and Pete Doherty had a threesome and they're still trying to work out who's the father..."
Shame - Songs of Praise
Label: Dead Oceans
Release Date: January 12th 2018
Review Date: January 26th 2018
Track Count: 10
Run Time: 38 minutes
Overview
This is a really good, fresh take on classic British Post-Punk (with a twist) from South London outfit, Shame. It sounds like Robert Smith, Paul Weller and Pete Doherty had a threesome and they're still trying to work out who's the father.
I like that the album doesn't just sit at one level. I feel like that's a big risk when writing Punk/Post-Punk, but they've managed to make really good use of light, shade and space. I like the big/wide yet raw production and the moments of darkness. There's good variety in pace, arrangement and tone throughout the album and some really good examples of that proper "wall of sound" production, the kind you'd expect from people like Chris Lord Alge, Nirvana and Butch Vig. The low vocal drones are really cool and create an almost trance-like atmosphere. They gave me the image of a group of monks performing Gregorian chants.
On the whole, it's exactly what I'd expect from a Post-Punk album. The lyrical conent is really good. It's simplistic yet meaningful and gets the message behind each track across in a really clear way.
I'd love to see these guys live.
Today's Gems
Follow the playlist here
- Concrete
- The Lick
- Friction
- Angie
1. Concrete
- The intro to this track reminds me a lot of The Cure
- I like the call and response in the vocals.
- I like the doubled/harmonised guitar lines. Nice and wide, play nicely with eachother.
- Really nice surprise moments of movement in the bass line.
2. The Lick
- Really nice groove to the bass line. Laid back and dark.
- I like the story telling.
- Low voice sounds like it's resonating in your skull.
- Dare I say, slightly remeniscent of Oasis the first time he sings in this track? Its not an Oasis track on-the-whole, but his voice sounds very familiar in that sense.
- I like the "This is how it starts" and "That's how it ends" bookending the track.
3. Friction
- Love the pushing feeling created by the percussion in this track (Tambourine? HiHats?).
- Loving the guitar tones. They fill all the spaces left by everything else really nicely.
- Slightly psychedelic/spacey moments. Think The Mighty Boosh.
- I like the high guitar line playing in unison with the low vocal line in the outro.
4. Angie
- Hits really nicely when the full arrangement comes in.
- Beautiful vocal harmonies and clashes.
- More nice guitar tones.
- The bass line on this track stays really solid/grounded, but moves at just the right moments, giving some nice little inflections and moments of surprise.
- Vocal drones work really well.
- A couple more Oasis-esque moments. Again, not an Oasis track, just moments.
- A couple of moments that - weirdly - remind me of U2. Early U2 though, when U2 were worth paying attention to.
Conclusion
To me, this album is a well thought out, well realised piece of work. There are loads of references to old favourites (whether intentional or not) that creates a really good sense of familiarity that is, at the same time, both new and interesting. By the way, I really like the cover! I think it fits the music perfectly.
Would I recommend it? Yes, this album is definitely worth your time. There's not a lot else I can say about it, other than "Its good! You should listen to it!
As you may or may not have noticed, I'm running slightly behind on these reviews due to being AFK for a couple of days. I've stuck to listening to a new album every day, I am currently just playing catch up on the write-ups, so watch this space...