Biffy Clyro - A Celebration of Endings

 "A Celebration of Endings" is the eighth studio album by Scottish rockers Biffy Clyro.  Well officially it's there 8th. But it could quite easily be argued its their ninth if you include last years quite brilliant "Balance, Not symmetry" soundtrack which was in effect is another Biffy Clyro album.  They are a band which seems to have snowballed fans over the years with every album release and have now headlined many festivals sometimes to the confusion of other bands like Nine inch Nails. They came on before them at Reading and Leeds festival one year and they claimed they didn't even know who Biffy were so were confused why they were above them in the bill.

But when you think about Biffy and how they got to this level; I really think its because they are unique and if you listen to a song by Biffy you will often instantly recognise it as being them. Whereas others in the rock genre it is not always as clear cut.  And that is what makes Biffy special.  I would say over their career that even though they are getting bigger and bigger, they haven't always hit the jackpot in terms of what I would call a winning album.  One of the reasons for this is because they have a tendency to write more complex songs which don't always come off as good songs.  Often its the simpler songs they write do come off and they are the ones that propelled them into the big time.  For example 27 and 57 in the early days and "Many of Horror".  But what differentiates them is when the complex songs do come off they are special. Look no further than the likes of "Living is a problem because everyone dies" and "Glitter and Trauma". Both technically ambitious songs but pulled off magnificently into classic songs.

But where am I going with this with "Celebration of endings".  Well it feels like they have 11 tracks here which are complex but delivered in a way which is accessible to the listener. Giving it instant appeal.  This is an absolute corker of a record which really stands out amongst their back catalogue.  One of the reasons for this is the introduction of a string section in some of the tracks and also piano in others.  They have expanded their sound and it is amazing to listen to.  They still have the fun, upbeat, jump up and down tracks.  I like "Tiny, indoor fireworks" and opener "North of no South" in particular. Especially in "North of no South" when Simon sings "Can you feel it".  Well Simon, YES WE CAN!"

I think the irony of calling this album the "Celebration of Endings" is because the last track on the album "Cop Syrup" really is a triumph in itself.  Listening to this track on first listen you really would not have guessed where it would end up.  It starts off so heavy and shouty for the first few minutes almost displaying the madness the band have been going through the last few years. Before half way though the track the strings come in for a long outro like finishing in a mountain landscape of peace and tranquillity.   Then the track kicks into gear for a final minute of pure madness.  Such an epic way to finish the album.

Overall Biffy really have done amazingly well on this record.  Replacing Iron Maiden as Download headliners may have surprised some. But listen to this along with the rest of their back catalogue and you'll find they have more than enough ammunition now to deliver the goods at these festivals.

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