Label: Mercury
Release Date: 11/08/08
Rating:
Probably one of the less great band names to emerge in the last couple of years - albeit a welcome break from the over used prefix of 'The' - Noah And The Whale's debut long player is more enticing than their name would have you believe.
Starting as they mean to go on, the new-school folkers wear the influences of Bob Dylan and Bonnie 'Prince' Billy and their melodic hearts firmly on their sleeves, giving the whole album an honesty rarely seen in today's cynical world of stupid hair cuts and post ironic electro-rock.
They open with a string of three upbeat numbers that compel the listener to get down to Londis to buy a bottle of Scrumpy and start lighting fires in the park, the best of which is possibly the first track '2 Atoms In A Molecule'. It takes until 'Do What I Do' to begin to play on the emotional heartstrings of their audience; the track sublimely blends strings, electric and acoustic guitars to achieve epic degrees of melancholy.
Such open and heartfelt songwriting is continued across the disc, not least in the beautiful 'Second Lover', which is the kind of love song that reminds you of how important it is to have someone to hold. The chart success of '5 Years Time' is unsurprising, as it is possibly the most accessible of the album, although those looking for the real killer here should find it in 'Rocks and Daggers'. Sold yet? You should be.
Martin Guttridge-Hewitt
Noah And The Whale Myspace
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