REVIEW: Stornoway - Tales From Terra Firma

*Originally published for Artrocker (12/3/13)

When this studious Oxford bunch were tipped for big things in 2010, there was little doubt that their charming folk pop would appeal to the mainstream. In the years since, Stornoway have toured extensively, signed to 4AD and released their praised debut, Beachcomber’s Windowsill. But breathe their name and some people still think you’re talking about that Scottish town on weather forecasts. Perhaps their second release will put them on the map.

‘You Take Me As I am’ welcomes listeners in medias res, with burring gospel keys, playful bass and drums akimbo. Unfortunately, it feels as if you are trespassing upon the band’s hodgepodge experimentalism and it's a messy introduction to Tales From Terra Firma.

Following track, ‘Farewell Appalachia’, is arguably the strongest on the album. A Middle-Eastern zither dances around warm acoustics and harmonies, whilst jazz rhythms carry a dulcimer in woozy enchantment. It’s a triumph and will compel you to hit repeat.

Exasperatingly, the mature moments stemming from tracks like ‘Farewell Appalachia’ are very few and far between in the album’s early stages. ‘The Bigger Picture’sees a return to Stornoway’s idiosyncratic happy-go-lucky pop and feels like it belongs to their previous release, save for the rather REM-inspired mandolin. Brian Briggs’ sparkling vocals often fail to command attention above the rollicking rhythms and, sadly, the tune fades into the ether. 

'Hook, Line, Sinker’ tells a nice story of journeying by the Thames to meet a lover, but musically-speaking,what the hell is it? Oddball phaser effects, rhythms unsure of their direction and removed vocals are but a few of its quirky components. It’s a confusing listen, written in what appears to be a wacky stream of consciousness. If opener ‘You Take Me As I am’is a bit messy, this is chaotic. 

The cascading guitars in ‘(A Belated) Invite To Eternity’ owe a lot to Vampire Weekend and nicely break up the early tracks. Rather cleverly, Stornoway have planted the strongest songs in the second half of the album, leaving a lasting impression of infectious melodies. 

Among these is the meaty ‘Knock Me On The Head’ with its joyful bass, seaside keys and trigger-sharp harmonies and the back-to-basics folk ballad, ‘November Song.’The most dramatic song on the album, ‘The Ones We Hurt The Most’,hears an Appalachian dulcimer glide over rich bodied harmonies –something Fleet Foxes could have penned. Briggs and co. have absolute conviction in every word they spit whilst this brooding, experimental Americana builds and builds, and it’s beautiful to listen to.

With its smorgasbord of instruments, Tales From Terra Firma is much bolder than its predecessor, but its weakness lies in the frustrating dichotomy between fresher sounds and the band's old folk-pop roots. Thankfully, it’s a healthy step forward.
3/5

REVIEW: Stornoway @ Oxford Town Hall - 14/2/13

*Originally published for Artrocker (19/2/13)

Every so often you watch a band perform at a venue so well suited to them that you can’t imagine them separate from it. Stornoway’s homecoming gig at the majestic Oxford Town Hall tonight befits them perfectly, where gothic revival pillars gawp at an ornamented ceiling and a hall organ sits proudly above the stage. Blue lighting dusts the domed roof, emitted in part from a moon lamplight onstage that marks the impending release of Tales From Terra Firma, the Oxford quartet’s sophomore effort.

There’s no sight of the band yet, save for a young woman playing a gentle Celtic melody on violin. It’s about the most romantic setting that you could wish to find yourself in for Valentine’s Day. Except, of course, if you’re alone in attendance…

Before long, the band enters, welcomed like they have a 30-year career behind them. They open with a song from the new album (which I have been able to hear in advance) called ‘Knock Me On The Head’ – a blustering, jocund little folk-pop number. It’s generally well-received, even if an abrasive fairground organ overpowers the sound.

Old-favourite ‘The Coalharbour Road’ gives vocalist Brian Briggs radiant confidence, with the audience singing passionately in unison. ‘Fuel Up’ sounds equally accomplished live with Briggs channelling self-deprecating humour gags between songs.

The cascading Vampire Weekend guitars in ‘(A Belated) Invite To Eternity’ float about the hall and enable the band to boast their dexterous talents. Supplemented by three additional musicians, the quartet effortlessly shift between textures and tempos, leaving eyes wide at the song’s close.

One thing that Stornoway are not afraid of is borrowing each other’s instruments and throwing all sorts of hodgepodge items into the mix. At first glance, the usual guitar, bass, drums and keys are in view, but on further inspection, autoharps, trumpets, dulcimers and even a saw can be spotted. If it makes a good sound, why not use it?

‘Take Me As I am’, another newbie taken from Tales, bursts forward with crisp acoustics and is wonderfully coloured by brass instruments. Briggs’ clear vocals and poetics shoot straight into your ear – a skill not often achieved live.
The same couldn’t be truer for ‘November Song’, a lilting solo ballad performed unplugged by Briggs alone. He is a born-performer and brings any audience chatter to silence in an instant.

All is rather tickey-boo until the actual tick-tock of ‘Clock-Watching.’ True to the band’s word, it really is a “strange” number; nothing could prepare the audience for the next three minutes of horror. Imagine the Benny Hill theme tune and…yeah, just imagine that.

Appropriately, ‘Clock-Watching’ marks the exact point at which interest dwindles. ‘Farewell Appalachia’ – arguably the strongest track on the new album – is sorely under-rehearsed and sounds completely unbalanced live. There’s little clue as to what the saw instrument adds, but thankfully pitch-perfect harmonies stop the track from stewing. ‘The Bigger Picture’ also sounds limp live and, in all honesty, puts a downer at the mid-way point, regardless of its happy-go-lucky makeup.

Whilst die-hard fans would argue that ‘Zorbing’, ‘I Saw You Blink’ and ‘Watching Birds’ are the standout performances, the billowing a capella harmonies in new song, ‘The Ones We Hurt The Most’, are what leave jaws ajar. Performed from a hall balcony, the band join double bass, violin, guitar and vocals in natural matrimony, growing together in sound as the song progresses. It really is a flawless performance.

As everyone bends their necks and leans on each other to reach the lofty heights, a real sense of community overwhelms the space – a kind of pride for what talent this city sprouts. Moreover, to house Stornoway in such a magnificent setting is this is testament to the crowd’s immovable respect and fondness for them. It’s for a band who still makes the city excited every time they return to play.

REVIEW: Album Of The Year: Grimes - Visions

*Originally published for the Oxford Music Blog (20/12/12) 

Certainly one to file in ‘other’, Grimes third and best album to date is a tricky old thing to define.

Critics have lazily described Claire Boucher’s music as having a ‘post-internet’ sound, but really she just has an incredible knack for marrying genres of the past with the present.

The result is a kind of ancient machine: established and contemporary. Boucher’s weightless, Cocteau Twins-like singing invariably meets with versatile synth patterns, an ambient sound that, unlike other modern electronic acts, doesn’t become repetitive.

Whether it’s the menacing pop of ‘Oblivion’, the video game glitches of ‘Genesis’, the classical-meets-digital brainwash of ‘Symphonia IX’ or the cataclysms of ‘Circumambient’, Visions is the kind of record that you will return to time and time again.