12 January, 2010

Editors - in this light and on this morning - album review



We have had numerous bands go in new directions this year, most retiring their familiar guitar sound in favour of the cold electronic hubbub of the synth. Mostly it has worked and given the bands a new lease of life, Jack Penate (surprisingly) and The Horrors are examples of this. Both acts were frankly also rans a couple of years ago, since re-inventing their sound, they have not only gathered a bigger following, but also pleased older fans in the process.

However, there are times it doesn’t work that well at all, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs latest offering sounds like a band struggling with its identity and deciding to throw everything into the mix. There are times where it is brilliant, but times when you ache for the trademark sound of Nick Zinners playing. Similarly, I like the Editors and I especially like their guitarist Chris Urbanowicz’s playing.

A shame then that it hardly features at all. Its not all bad mind, opener and title track, In this light on this evening is part Joy Division muttering and part 1980’s Terminator / Blade Runner film score. It works brilliantly and is the most atmospheric track the Editors have done to date. Uncompromisingly retro without sounding dated. This manages to set the tone for the entirety of the album, it is very much of that ilk. Cold and mechanical. Almost… New Order.
So where do Editors fit in this new direction divide? Are they with The Horrors or the Yeah yeah yeahs? Well, I’m not entirely sure. Mostly it works, but there are some nagging problems with the album.
The other three tracks, which are the most obvious single material: Bricks and Mortar, Papillion and Eat raw meat are all fairly decent. The stand out being the latter of the three. Sadly, the rest of the 43 minutes is more or less filler material. The Boxer is worth a mention for its god awful main synth lead, which sounds identical to a club classic (its name escapes me) with the exception of two note changes to avoid a legal battle. A massive shame, otherwise it’s a fairly good track.

In this light and on this morning’s songs are plainly just not that great, a few of gems inside a rock of filler. It does sound like the band got some new toys, watched Terminator and got carried away in the studio. Lyrics sound like an afterthought, nonsensical, flat and emotionless. Maybe this was the desired effect, to match the synths, but I doubt it. As a result the vocals almost get in the way of a potentially great album. At times it soars like a movie score, only for the vocals and at times, frankly stupid lyrics (“It kicks like a sleep twitch”) to make it crash back down to earth.
Editors are certainly brave in completely transforming their sound; it will divide the fans. It might lose some hardcore followers but I feel that it was genuinely the best move they could have made, their old sound, although epic would have begun to tire by now.

It truly feels they have gone through the transition of Joy Division to New Order. However, perhaps this should have been the bands instrumental opus to some kind of gritty futuristic movie set in eastern block dystopia. Sadly, the vocals completely marred the enjoyment of this album, until they release an instrumental version I think I’ll pass.

6/10

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