Capital Cities - Solarize

"Solarize" is the second album by LA dance pop act Capital Cities. It has been 5 years since their debut album "In a Tidal Wave of Mystery" came out. Although it is only this year that I discovered the band as it came up in my Apple Music recommendations. I was very impressed with the debut album but for some reason didn't take my interest any further in terms of following them on Twitter/Facebook etc.  So last week when I was looking through new releases on Apple Music I noticed "Solarize" was literally just out. It was a nice surprise and a novelty for me going into an album where all the songs are fresh. Rather than being drip fed singles in the lead up to the release.

I don't really like calling Capital Cities a pop act that much to be honest. As much as I like pop music and there is some talent within the pop genre. I feel the artists themselves generally don't really posess that much talent themselves and often get songs written for them. Where as Capital Cities really do possess talent.  Maybe an indie pop band would describe them better.

For those hoping for something different from their debut I think will be slightly disappointed with this album. But for those like me who wanted more of the same will be absolutley delighted.  This is an absolute stormer of an album and I reckon I must have listened to this album at least 10 times already.  The key which makes this album so good is that it is feel good music. It has nice variety and so many positive upbeat vibes flowing through it.

My favourite track on the album is "Just say when". As well as having that wonderful upbeat vibe I was talking about. It also has what I think is a trumpet solo which is just fantasitc.  "Drop Everything", "My name is Mars" and "Drifting" are other highlights. But to be honest there aren't any skipable tracks here. There are also a couple of alternative versions of songs on the album. Most notably "Girl Friday" which has some rapping thanks to Rick Ross.  I'm not generally a fan of rap music but I don't mind it in small doses. And here it works well. In fact so well I prefer it to the other version on the album.

Overall this is a fantastic album and I'm so glad I discovered by accident it was out. I won't make the mistake next time as I'm now following them on Twitter and Facebook. I'm not sure how big they are in the UK but if they keep producing music like this someone has to sit up and take note eventually.

Death Cab for Cutie - Thank You for Today

Seattle indie rockers Death Cab for Cutie return with their 9th studio album "Thank You for Today". Most of the publicty around this album seems to focus on how it's the first album Death Cab have released without founding member Chris Walla.  And also that they brought in guitarist Dave Depper on guitar and Zac Rae on keyboards for the first time.  This kind of change in the band does bring questions on how this will effect Death Cab's sound and what direction they will take.

Well to answer this, this is easily recognisable as a Death Cab album. It still has that same kind of chirpy guitar flow to it and Ben Gibbard's noticable vocal style. When I first heard the singles come out one by one I did get very excited for this record. I thought "Gold Rush", "I Dreamt we spoke again" and "Autumn Love" were all excellent and still do.  But the rest of the album feels a bit like they are on auto pilot a bit in terms of their sound. Don't get me wrong they still good songs but I don't feel like its anything they haven't done before. They did bring Lauren Mayberry in from Chrvches in for the track "Northern Lights" to do some vocals.  However, I don't feel it adds a great deal to the track but doesn't take away from it either. 

One thing though that this album is missing and would turn this album from a good album to a great album is that epic track which is lacking here. The likes of Tranatlantasim" and "They might be giants" from the album "Transatlantasism" or "I will possess your heart" off "Narrow Stairs" are no where to be seen. To me those songs took those albums and Death Cab for Cutie into the highest of heights of indie rock.  It almost feels that "Thank You for Today" was the safe option for them. They can churn out 4 minute indie tracks all day long. But writing that epic its a bit more challenging, a bit more risky in terms of whether they can pull it off etc. Especially if former guitarist Walla was the inspiration behind the longer tracks.

Overall though this is still a good album.  If I hadn't heard any of the previous classic albums that they had made before it I would have been more impressed with this. It is just I know what they are really capable of.  But this time I think they chose to get settled in with the new line up. Hopefully they can go off a bit more adventurous in future as we all know they can pull it off.  

The Coral - Move through the dawn

Liverpudlians The Coral have just released their 9th album "Move through the dawn". The band formed in 1996 and came to the forefront of the British indie scene in the early 2000s with their breakout self titled debut album featuring indie classic "Dreaming of you" along with many other jangly, inticing pop numbers.  Despite not seeing them live in their early days I was keen on their first few albums. After that for me, although they kept releasing albums, they kind of disappeared a bit. And they did actually go on a hiatus for a while.

That was until this year when they seemed to have got themselves back on the map. I caught them supporting the Manic Street Preachers earlier this year and was very impressed. Although "Dreaming of you" still appears to be their best song. There was enough other good material on show to make me investigate some previous releases, most notably there previous album to this one "Distance inbetween".  They did play one new song at that gig "Sweet release" which does feature on this album but to be honest at the time it did feel like one of the weaker tracks on the night.  So that being said I wasn't all that excited about this album but at the same time I was happy to give it a listen and be proved wrong when it came out.

So that's what I did and I have to say I was pleanstly surprised in a very good way. The last album seemed to focus more on guitar wizardry and more rock.  This is for me the most accessible album I have heard by them. It also feels like they have not gone for the approach of making all out singles. But instead a collection of songs that fit together. I'm not saying the sound exactly the same. There are some up tempo songs, there are more tender songs. But the general feel of the album is consistent throughout and that is what makes this album so good. 

I did mention that I didn't really like "Sweet release" when I heard it live and even when I gave it a few listens when it came out as a single. But I have to say it has grown on me and I do think that its because it fits so well with the rest of the songs on the album. Other highlights include opener "Eyes Like Pearls" and the closer "At the fair" which is a majestic acousitic track.  I don't really listen to the radio these days but due to the type of tracks and the quality of the tracks I can see this being played by a variety of radio stations from XFM to Radio 2.

Overall this was a really nice suprise.  Even though the last album "Distance inbetween" got me to sit up and pay attention to The Coral again. With this album I really do feel they have stepped it up a notch and is my favourite Coral album I have listened to.

White Lies - To Lose my Life

"To Lose my Life" is the debut album by London based band, White Lies. In 2009 White Lies were arguably one of the hardest working bands in Britain. With sources counting up to 31 festival appearances, a support slot on Coldplay's stadium tour and a headline tour of their own. I saw them twice in 2009 and both times I wasn't there to see them. T in the park I was waiting to see someone else and the other time I was seeing Coldplay. I thought they were ok but would've helped if I had heard the album beforehand. Well now I've got it and the survey says...

This album is absolutely magnificent. 10 tracks and not one bad song on it. Each track is a crowd pleasing anthem. Easy comparisons can be made to Editors and Interpol's more accessible stuff. But the reality is each of these songs have the White Lies stamp on it.  Obviously though like any album, there are going to be some tracks you like better than others. It's just in this case the other tracks still rank pretty high.

If I had to choose my favourites it would probably be "Death", "A place to hide", "Unfinished Business" and "Fair well to the fairground". Yes I know that's 40% of the album but I just love these tracks. They represent just why they have been invited to so many festivals. These are catchy tunes which are easy to sing along to; exactly what you want at a festival! I think the biggest variable with bands is the singer. Although you can get many degrees of talent with different instruments. The singer's voice can be the big differentiators which is definitely the case with Harry McVeigh. He does sound a bit like Tom Smith from the Editors but with the different feel of the songs making White Lies stand out.

Now the other tracks, I have tried to look for flaws in these tracks, even the more downbeat "Nothing to Give". But I can't because it adds a new dimension to the album and works so well! I think its one of those albums you'll either love all of it or hate all of it.

Overall this is by far the best debut I have heard in 2009 and is definitely in my top 10 albums of 2009. Each lyric is sang with such purpose and meaning and everything else combines to make this absolute belter of an album.  The only thing is, where do they go from here for their second album? No idea but looking forward to it already!