Asylums - Signs of Life

 

"Signs of Life" is the 4th album by UK indie band Asylums.  Having formed in 2014, they have been pretty consistent in bringing out albums every 2 years being 2016, 2018, 2020 and now 2022.  I got into them before their debut came out after hearing "Missing persons". All their albums are really good and although the critics have praised their work too, they haven't managed to get to a level many think they should be.

They don't seem to tour that much and to my recollection have only played Glasgow once when they supported Ash.  They have however made various festival appearances including Glastonbury.  They may just be a band that prefers making records rather than endlessly touring which would be fair enough.  Another reason I think they are not as big as they should is because I don't think they are a part of any movement.  For instance, like Brit pop in the 90s, emo in the late 00s or the current alternative metal movement going on just now. 

 
I think if Asylums were around in the early 2000s when the UK indie scene was thriving, I think they would be a lot bigger than they are at the moment. As right now there isn't many new bands out there doing what Asylums are doing at the moment.  But the band has to be true to themselves and make music they believe in, and they enjoy. And when you listen to their music you really get the impression that this is exactly what they are doing.  They are not trying to pretend to be band that they are not just to gain popularity which I'm sure must be tempting.

"Signs of Life" is another cracking album by the Essex lads. Filled once again with some edgy riffs through songs such as "Scatterbrain" and "Crypto Klepto".  But also, on this album you'll find the introduction of strings on quite a few tracks such as "Eras the Edges" and closing track "The Mirror".  I like how the strings fit into the songs rather than dominate them or not be strong enough in the mix. They are just right.  "Eras the Edges" is probably one of the slowest songs they have done.  While "The Mirror" is a fine way to end an album.

Overall, Asylums have done it again.  A great album and one I will be going back to time and again, much like the rest of their discography.  I hope the get some more recognition because they sure deserve it.

Asylums - Genetic Cabaret

Asylum's follow up their 2018 sophomore release "Alien Human Emotions" with their third album "Genetic Cabaret".  They seem to have got themselves into a good album release cycle with an album released every 2 years; as their debut "Killer Brain Waves" was released in 2016.  Although the singles were great, I wasn't a massive fan of that album. But "Alien Human Emotions" grabbed me more in every way and thought it was a good step up for them.

One of the main talking points around the album seems to be who it was produced by which was Steve Albini. He has produced albums from the likes of Nirvana, Manic Street Preachers and Pj Harvey to name a few.  I realise he is a well respected name in the music industry and for a band it must be quite a coo to get a person like him produce an album for you.  But at the end of the day its the band that write the music and play the songs. So I think they are the ones that should be getting full credit for this album.  Steve of course deserves his name in the liner notes though.

Speaking of the actual CD case and liner notes this one is a bit of a strange one and may be showing where the record industry is at.  The back of the album does not give you a track list.  I remember always going into record shops and looking at the back of an album to see what tracks are on an album. Not this one.  I say maybe its a sign of the times though that people are buying the albums online now so they can see track lists there.   Also strange to have the lyrics in the liner notes with no spaces between words.  So in other words its pretty useless as trying to decipher the lyrics in this booklet while listening to the album is almost impossible.  I think having a bigger booklet for spacing out the words would have been more costly. But instead of the lyrics they could have just put in some pictures instead.

Anyway let's talk about the music.  I would say on the whole this is another step up for Asylums. There are so many tracks on the album which could be released as singles.  Although I think they made good choices with the tracks they did release as singles.  Them being "Catalogue Kids", "Platitudes", "Perfect life in a perfect world" and "Who writes tomorrows headlines".  Something they have managed to do with this album is to really keep the songs unique by sending them off in their own different directions.  On the whole they are such upbeat, bounce around indie rock fun.  Funnily enough I watched the James Bond film "Tomorrow never dies" the other night.  I don't think I'll ever be able to watch it again without having "Who writes tomorrow's headlines" stuck in my head throughout. As the film is about about a baddy who owns a media company. I won't say any more than that though as don't want to spoil it.

I will spoil more of this album though as the singles taken from this album are not the only good songs off this album showing the depth of this release.  Two of my personal favourites are back to back with "Distance between left and right" and "The Miracle Age".  The "Distance between left and right" is so much fun, just a frenzied filled track which is another where you don't know which way its going to go next.  Then there is "The Miracle Age".  Now I can't actually think of a track that Asylums have done which even comes close to this both in terms of structure and magnitude. This is massive.  It's one of those step up songs which gradually builds and builds throughout the track finishing off at a climax. It works wonderfully here and is testament to their progression as a band in terms of song writing.

The majority of this album for me is very positive but I do feel there is a weak link on the album and that is the last track "Dull days".  To me the album up until that point has such a feel good vibe to it and this track just brings the tone of that down.  I do think this will be track that people can relate to especially with lockdown at the moment but I just don't think it fits in the rest of the album.  However overall this is a very good album by Asylums and I thoroughly recommend it.  Hopefully the times will come around again when they can tour this album and give it the airing live that it deserves. 

Asylums - Alien Human Emotions

Indie rockers Asylums are back with their second album "Alien Human Emotions". I have been into Asylums right back before their debut album "Killer Brain waves" came out, round about the time the fantastic single "Missing Persons" was released. Although that and "Joy in a small wage" were absolute anthems. "Killer Brain Waves" wasn't an album I found myself going back to that much. I liked it initially but I did feel like they were in one gear which was edgy punk/indie songs.   But from that album it was clear the talent was there and I was excited to hear what they would come up with next.

Well first up from this new album they released "When we wake up" which really is a total belter. Picking up from the best bits of the last album and really sending out a statement of intent. But that changed slightly in the second single "Milenials" which threw a bit of curveball as we see Asylums starting to try and mix things up a bit. This is a bit more of a laid back track and finds Asylums really getting into a groove.

And getting into a groove is really what Asylums have done with this album. It is a far more diverse album than "Killer Brain Waves" and this is a very good thing.   The songs feel like a band who are progressing and making better songs. The album kicks off with "Day release to the moon". A track which is such a good way to start an album.  "Bottle Bank" and "Alien Human emotions" are some more indie rock goodness. "Napalm Bubblegum" would not be out of place on their first record as its a more edgy, punky track. But it still fits in here and adds to the diversity. "Sexual Automation" takes you on a bit of ride. Starts off with some nice acoustic guitar with Luke's fine vocals. It then picks up and is a really nice track to listen to.  Album closer "Company you can keep" is an even slower track and fine way to end the album.

I've probably mentioned about half the tracks on this album but one thing I haven't mentioned is the weaknesses. And to be honest there is a reason for that. Beacuse there isn't any weaknesses on this album. This is a very well put together album which shows a band who have taken things to the next level.  It has a certain feel good factor about it and that is something the band should be feeling right now as they certainly have delivered the goods.