It’s always tricky when a band starts to grow up. Some bands away and come back weaker, weedier, lacking versions of their former selves (Weezer, Placebo, Travis etc) and others come back stronger than ever (Green Day’s American Idiot? The Flaming Lips’ Yoshimi?). However, Death Cab for Cutie has balanced the thin line between the two with their latest offering, Narrow Stairs. Neither weedier, nor stronger than their predecessors, it’s simply, well, bland. Not lacking anything in particular, it’s good, but fails to have any of the grab-you-by-the-ears stuff that Transatlanticism or Plans had.

With many of the band now into their 30’s, “Narrow Stairs” treads a narrow pathway to well-constructed popularity: nothing on the collection will offend old listeners, and it will probably appeal to new listeners too, but nothing that will have the effect of “Soul Meets Body” or “The Sound of Settling”, and the mass OC-style appeal they have earn. Their sixth album, we get a feeling that Chris Walla and Ben Gibbard and their friends have carefully constructed the collection to “tick” the A&R boxes: 8 minute experimental “rock out”? Check –‘I will possess your heart’. Happy, summery upbeat song? Check – ‘No Sunlight’. Rousing, motivation building song? Check – ‘You Can Do Better than Me’. Sensitive end-of the-relationship song? Check – The Ice Is Getting Thinner.

Relying throughout on their well-refined “safe” sound, Death Cab rely on Chris’ jangly guitars and Nick’s driving bass lines to get them through the album, with none of the tracks sounding particularly “out there” like they did on some of the suburban angsty anthems of earlier albums “We Have The Anthems And We’re Voting Yes” and “You Can Play These Songs With Chords”. Both of these featured an innovative mixture of moany angst and, well, just plain strange tracks (remember “Flustered / Hey Tomcat!”’s cut up hip-hop beats?). We understand that bands have to grow up and move on, but Narrow Stairs just looks too much like a “safe” bet that wouldn’t alienate, will sell well, and keep the A&R people happy at Atlantic’s money counting department.

Many of the tracks sound like they could provide the soundtrack to many a moderately successful indie flick – you can imagine many of the tracks sound tracking this year’s new Juno or Garden State. It’s the inoffensive stuff you could put on a car stereo with a group of friends with wildly differing senses of humour – nobody will complain, but likewise nobody will go “wow, who is THIS band?”.

One saving grace for the collection is Ben Gibbard’s lyrics. Whilst his story-telling skills will never reach the level of the Morrisseys of this world, he sure knows how to tell a tale, be it regrouping at the start of the album, dealing with rejection in the middle and the final blow to the relationship at the end of the album. Lyrics such as “The Ice Is Getting Thinner’s” “We bury our love in the windsory grave / Along came the snow, was all that remained” hawks back to the Gibbard of old, obvious yet familiar and friendly.

Don’t get me wrong though – Death Cab can sure make an album that would put many of their pretenders to the thrown quiver in their boots (yes, The Fray, I’m looking at you). Just we’ve grown accustomed to more aurally pleasing albums from them, more challenging works. It just would have been nice if they’d had the balls to take a few risks that got them to where they are now, and took the plunge that would alienate some, but draw more new fans in.

With so many singer/songwriters making their way around the UK music market, when I was sent details of another one, my first reaction was that he was going to be another James Blunt / Damien Rice carbon copy. However, in the interests of fairness I had a listen, and was pleasantly surprised by Yoav, an Israeli-born, South Africa raised nomad currently living in London.

His debut album, “Charmed and Strange” is something quite outside the normal realms of singer-songwriters, with the vast majority of the music coming just from him and his bass heavy, danceable thuds his guitar generates.

“Club Thing” sees Yoav taking a wander around a dark and sweaty underground club, his guitar strumming the background to his story: “he watches from the corner / he waits for her to stumble / he knows that he’s the king / the king of the cardboard jungle”.

Quickly followed up by “Live”, Yoav provides the fast-paced soundtrack to leopards and lions going in for the kill, a hip-hop version of wild Saharan battles.

Personal highlight of the album, “Beautiful Lie” is gentle, yet somehow haunting as Yoav provides wisdom beyond his years, slowly building the song up, bringing it back down for a brilliant crescendo that is probably one of the best tracks this year by a solo artist. Unfortunately however “Beautiful Lie” is followed by the weakest track of the album, “Angel and the Animal” which whilst is an alright track, it would be more at home on a Disney soundtrack rather than one of a respectable rising star.

Closing out with the marvellous “Where is My Mind”, Yoav takes the Pixies classic and turns it into his own, something that more famous artists have failed spectacularly (yes, Placebo, I’m looking at you). It’s haunting, a brilliant album-closer and shows off just all of Yoav’s skills: great delivery, film like sound tracking and haunting tunes.

Whilst it undoubtedly won’t be for everyone, I personally love it, and it spent most of the past term in my car as I motored up and down to uni each and every day. Give him a go, you never know, you might like it.

I’ve been aware of The Envy Corps for a while, and was excited to be going to see them last August, only for Brandon to suffer a stroke. However, since then they’ve recovered and are about to release their debut UK album, Dwell. Sounding like a slower, poppier Kings of Leon, or a more mainstream Pablo-Honey era Radiohead mixed with Idlewild, Coldplay and Band of Horses, they’re instantly accessible, yet still different enough to not sound like a rip-off.

Opening with “Wires and Wool”, the Iowa foursome start off with a rocky, obvious single that is immediately catchy, full of brooding anger, just waiting to boil over into a full blown fight. Closely followed up with “Sylvia (The Beekeeper)”, they show off their literary references, commenting “Sylvia Plath / Soaked in the bathtub whilst I was pushing drugs with my Dad”, getting all philosophical about suicide and other such fun subjects.

“99,100″ is one of my personal stand-out tracks - a proper stomper, you can just imagine it as the backing music in a new Quentin Tarantino movie over one of the vicious fight scenes, building up and then going quiet, with lead singer Luke Petipoole’s fragile voice building its strength as the song reaches its crescendo.

“Story Problem” is a joyful march that should have the festivals clapping in time, chanting and waving their hands in unison. If it doesn’t, something’s wrong with them. Asked about the background to the song, Luke Petipoole reportedly told a reporter: “No comment,” he says, “but I will tell you this: it was a one-off, and for one night only. I am not generally a deviant.” Ooh er! The brilliant, Takeshi’s Castle style video is available on youtube from here, and looks like they had fun doing it.

Whilst nothing new or particularly innovative, they’re one of the few bands that can put out an album which is consistently good - some obvious strong singles, some quality album tracks that just reward extended listening. You can tell that they’ve worked hard, and deserve success. Watch this band, as they very well could do an Arcade-Fire explosion in popularity on us this year.

Dwell is due out on April 28th.

They’re one of the biggest bands of the past 20 years and have more critical acclaim than they know what to do with. Due to this, reviewing a Radiohead album is possibly one of the hardest jobs going – no matter what is written about the album, there will be someone who has a different opinion of the album. However, whatever your thoughts, you’ve got to agree that Radiohead have guts - their release strategy for this new effort has been well documented in the national press, and has worked out amazingly well for the band. By letting fans choose how much to pay from $0 all the way up to $100, they’ve managed to prove that people are still willing to pay for music.

Radiohead live just 15 minutes drive away from where I live, and whilst a lot of friends love them to pieces, I’ve failed to understand their appeal for many years. Many of their songs from their OK Computer / Kid A period sound simply like Thom Yorke wailing over distorted guitars to me. However, their new album “In Rainbows” offers a surprisingly accessible new sound from the kings of re-invention.

Gaining a more electronic sound that’s more akin to Thom Yorke’s recent solo effort, “The Eraser”, this collection is a trippy visit through the dreamy world of four British guys, rightly worried about the state of the world today. Many of the lyrics are slurred or hard to work out, giving a level of personalisation: everyone will hear the songs differently; they’ll have their own stories to fit the songs. However, out are the lyrics slating today’s leaders that have graced their more recent albums and in are stories of relationships (“I don’t want to be your friend, I just want to be your lover. No matter how it ends, No matter how it starts” – House of Cards).

Jonny Greenwood’s recent naming as one of the UK’s best Classical Composers of 2006 and experience as film soundtrack writer shines through, as the more complex music is higher up on the mix. Songs such as “Reckoner”, features a complex, multilayered musical arrangement that would put many film soundtrack scorers to shame.

Many of the songs have a “dream like” hazy feel to them thanks to the electronic beeps and bips, which is in sharp contrast to some of their earlier more guitar based albums. Star of the album, “Reckoner” comes just over the halfway point bringing a mournful song, and typically vague lyrics (“Dedicated to all you, all your needs?”) sung in Thom’s high falsetto. Violins play, tambourines rattle and gentle drums grace the climbing close, for the undoubted highlight.

Closing the album is “Videotape”, the most depressing track of the album as Thom battles with his own mortality – “This is my way of saying goodbye, because I can’t do it face to face”. Building slowly to what you think will be a crescendo, it just dies, a fitting end to the album – strong, beautiful, yet still able to surprise you.

This review was originally published in Southern Oregon’s Siskiyou Newspaper.

Now that the Spice Girls have reformed (God help us…), it seems that girl power is about to make a sizeable return. However, for those who prefer a more “indie” take on girl power then The Pipettes are the choice of the thinking (or drunk) girls of today. Their 50’s and 60’s influenced indie pop is sure to set them apart from the competition, with catchy, smutty hooks that will have you humming all the way home.

With matching polka-dot dresses and seamless ’60s-inspired choreography, The Pipettes formed in 2004. “We are The Pipettes” is the debut album from them, released last Tuesday after waiting almost a year since its UK release. Each of the songs we can relate to, no matter what experiences you’ve had – the lyrics, direct, funny, interesting and personal. The three girls (RiotBecki, Gwenno and Rosay) have stormed the UK and look set to do the same here with discerning indie kids, with girls who want to be them and guys who want to be with them.

Starting off the album relatively cleanly, opening song “We Are the Pipettes” sees the girls set out their manifesto: “We are the Pipettes, and we’ve got no regrets, if you haven’t noticed yet, we’re the prettiest girls you’ve ever met”. Cheesy, yes, but that’s nothing compared to what “Pull Shapes” brings. Sounding right at home in a remake of Grease, this is possibly one of the campest songs in their collection - “Dance with me, pretty boy tonight, dance with me, and we’ll be alright”. No matter who you are, “Pull Shapes” will have you dancing wherever you are.

As the collection progresses the album moves on to more complex issues. “Sex” starts off with a simple driving drum background before things speed up a bit – “let’s stop with all the talking, why not try something new? Because there’s no need for any talking in what we’re about to do”. “One night stand” tells the story of exactly that: sneaking out the morning after, with the catchy chorus of “I don’t love you, if you think that this is cruel, then you should see what my friends do,”

Closing off the collection with “I love you”, we get a feeling that at the end of the debauchery of the previous songs the girls have had their fun and just want to settle down with a nice guy and go off into the sunset. They’ve played hard, now it’s time to settle down – we wonder what this means for their second album, though hopefully it will be another collection of catchy asides on their late night exploits.

This review was originally published in Southern Oregon’s Siskiyou Newspaper.

Back with their sophomore effort, Hard-fi are one of the current crop of British indie pop exports who aren’t afraid to tell the truth. Following in the tracks of Maximo Park, Stereophonics and Kasabian, they have crafted an album that is full of pop-hooks, well thought out tales of suburban UK life that combine to make a stronger album than their debut, Stars of CCTV.

The band hails from Staines, and their songs reflect on the darkness of this place, condensing them into radio-friendly 3 minute songs. Garnering plenty of press attention by their decision to have no album cover, instead a simple front with the simple words “No Cover Art Available”

Opening with lead single “Suburban Knights”, lead vocalist Rich Archer makes it immediately clear that this will be a much more politicised album – “A global terror they say, we are at war, but I ain’t got time for that ‘cos these bills keep dropping through my door” he comments.

“Television” sees Rich sneering like he was the last punk standing. ‘Politicians don’t wanna listen/ They only wanna make money out of you …‘ he says with all the ferocity of The Clash back in the day. One of many of the great sing-alongs on the album, its sure to be a big hit next summer as the band makes its way around the European festival circuit.

The album slows down for a brief respite as Archer pays respect to his late mother on the despairing “Help Me Please”. Whilst it’s a distinctly different sound compared to the majority of the album, it’s also one of the most memorable.

Many of the tracks have a new-found polished sound, with “Watch Me Fall Apart” having the backing of a full orchestra. This is in stark contrast to their debut, which was recorded for the equivalent of just $800, in bedrooms, bars, and in their producer’s BMW. This bargain basement production is done away with for “Once Upon A Time in The West”, producing one of the more polished albums of the year, which will upset some of their early fans who liked the stripped back sounds.

Closing off with string-laden “The King”, Hard-fi reflect on what their new found fame and sacrifices they’ve had to make for it. A fine closer that shows off their new album – unafraid to make bold statements, show raw emotion, and try new sounds.

Hard-Fi’s “Once Upon a Time in the West” is available now on Atlantic Records.

When a band has a slow burner hit such as the New Pornographer’s Twin Cinema or The National’s Alligator, their follow-up effort has an incredible burden of expectation placed upon them. Sometimes they manage it (see The National’s Boxer – Alligator’s equal if not better), and other times they just miss the mark, as is the case with “Challengers”.

Challengers is their fourth album and all expectations were pointing towards it being another indie-pop classic such as Twin Cinema, having the fun, slightly chaotic vibe that made them so many fans. However, Challengers has much more of a “morning after the chaotic party” vibe. Many of the songs suffer from too much production, taking away any sort of feeling or atmosphere, and as I mentioned earlier this year it sounds too much like AC Newman’s project instead of the Canadian Super-Group they were way back. The energy gone, the collection is like a Canadian version of a Feeder album – all consistently good tracks, just all a bit samey and nothing new or innovative, which is a shame given their debut Mass Electric, and their third album, Twin Cinema.

When they break into “All The Things That Go To Make Heaven And Earth” early into the album I couldn’t help but feel that things were going to go on an up, however how wrong I was when 2 minutes in you realise it’s just repetitive, lacking in any of the power-pop juice songs like The Bleeding Heart Show had.

As the album progresses things get better, with an air of managing to master the pomp and circumstance of an end-of-film soundtrack, rather than soundtracking the party. “Adventures in Solitude” is a slow builder that manages to capture a snippet of the magic Twin Cinema once managed. Followed by album closer “The Spirit of Giving In” the pair provide the standout tracks to the album. A campfire sing-along, it manages to capture a tiny bit of their old magic.

Perhaps this lacklustre album is partly down to the lack of Neko Case and Dan Bejar playing the large roles that they used to in the band, or perhaps it’s just a running out of energy as the band members focus more on side projects. Either way, it’s an okay collection, but by no means a match for Twin Cinema.

A couple of months ago I featured Bikini Black Special as a “band to watch in the future”, after I was involved in the judging of the Road To V bands through Virtual Festivals. Now they’ve sent me their first demo CD, which sounds exceptionally professional for a debut effort.

A mix between the urgency of Arctic Monkeys, early Razorlight (before they got shite) and the tales of Hard-Fi, BBS are never going to win innovation and originality awards. However what they lack in originality they more than make up with in style, talent and sheer songs.

Opening with “Easy, Faster” the lads have a fine opening track, combining northern grit with a fine tune, bemoaning how “you’ve got it so easy”. Quickly builds into an unstoppable juggernaut, before plunging straight into the second track, “Cuffs + Kisses“.

Vocalist Stevo sounds like a mixture of Arctics’ Alex Turner and The Enemy’s Tom, channelling his bitterness and anger into the track – calls of “the same old pathetic shit… You’re good for nothing, you don’t know what you’re missing” making a great anthem for jilted youth.

“Shoot Me Now” has a memorable yet simple chorus with a distinct feeling of yearning throughout the track, reminiscent of their MySpace track “Do What You Do”. Live I’d imagine live this track is one of the standout tracks of the collection.

“Outside Tonight” is a fine closing track to the collection – slower than the rest, a great love song that just begs for repeated listening.

Radio friendly, Bikini Black Special’s demo may not be the most original ever created, but it sure is a fine start to a career that could bear many fruits.

The National release their fourth full length album tomorrow, following on from their previous epic “Alligator” which was a staple of many critics best of 2005 lists. Morose, dark and epic it was innovative and not afraid to be different, and they’ve carried on from Alligators brilliance with their new album, “Boxer”.

“Boxer” is a mixed bag of songs. Whilst all excellent, it was inevitable that the songs couldn’t quite match the raw emotion that “Alligator” had at times (see “Mr. November” and “Abel”), instead they’ve grown musically and as song writers, creating multilayered songs that would put many artists to shame. The collection seems to be a bit more upbeat than previous albums, however they now have a new range of problems: Alligator it was debauched affairs, on Boxer its dealing with life on the road and finding stable relationships.

Opening with the dreamy, soothing “Fake Empire” with its oblique lyrics and multi layered instrumentation, we immediately feel right at home with old friends, whilst also being relatively chart friendly. “Mistaken for Strangers” could pass for Interpol, was it not for Matt Berninger’s deep, gravelly voice that makes their sound so unique and so soothing.

Driving drums with military precision is the order of the day with “Squalor Victoria”, initially one of my least favourite tracks is definitely a grower. At first I found Matt’s voice a bit too dreary and repetitive, however the subtle differences are what make the song tick and drive it along so ably.

“Apartment Story” has a key sense of urgency to it, ‘We’ll stay inside til somebody finds us / do whatever the TV tells us’, perhaps dealing with the perceived downward spiral of society, brought about by their extensive touring.

My favourite combination of songs on the album “Start a War” and “Guest Room” are both immediately memorable, but reward repeated listening. “Start a War” starts off slowly and steadily, before going over the crest of the hill to an epic soundscape with violins and more intricate sounds.

Last song on the album “Gospel” is one of their most epic, dreary and impressive. I first heard it on the train, rain pouring down the windows, grey skies. The song fits perfectly, and is one of their most melancholic, a perfect close to the album.

So, overall, an impressive album from The National, and one that with “Alligator” looks set to define their career. It’ll be interesting to see how the songs develop when played live, however everything points to an amazing year for The National, and one that will be featured on many end of year “best of’s”,

However, its definitely not one for a summer day at the festivals – more of one for a winters evening spent curled up with an old classic by the fire.

Klum’s debut album “Victory all my life” sees the LA five piece take a variety of musical styles and re-invent them as their own. At times they could be compared to Radiohead, at others they’re as melodic as Sigur Ros and others as chaotically organised as Arcade Fire and Guillemots, whilst never treading on the toes of the aforementioned artists. However there is one thing we will all agree on: you’ll either love or despise their debut.

Album opener, “Focus”, seems to be lacking in much focus, providing quite a good idea of whats to come throughout the album, but tries to be many things at once it seems. Whilst this is no bad thing, it does seem a bit of a mish mash of styles in one track. “Asleep at trial”, the second track of the album starts off with a voice akin to Thom Yorke’s, before descending into a mish-mash of sounds similar to an Arcade Fire live show

“Breathe Machine” is the perfect soundtrack to a good night’s dreaming: disembodied voices in the background, gentle, organ-like keys and the soothing vocals of Brock Flores. Slowly “I can’t dance” fades in, and the dream continues, floating over epic sounds that are akin to early Radiohead.

“From the door” sounds like a chilled out attempt at cock-rock, “That’s not really my car, but I look good in it and that could take me far” says Brock, and you can’t help but feel that he actually means it, before everyone starts to overlap each other with drums and electric guitars chaotically mixed: but just before it becomes unlistenable they pull it back round, suddenly becoming very tight and together.

Perhaps one of the most vibrant tracks of the album, “I sing the song wrong” is full of hidden little sounds, from the child-like keys at the start, to the percussion throughout, and bird-like guitars and weird sounds at the end, its songs like this that show what Klum could be in a few albums time.

Closer “Seaslow” starts off quite similar to Sigur Ros, but soon we realise that its not quite as good, and the album could probably have managed without it: a long string of moaning before the obligatory loud ending.

So all in all a bit of a mixed bag from this LA band. They could be ones to watch or check out in an album or two’s time, when they’ve perfected their sound a little bit more. At the moment they seem to be trying to be too much at once, and whilst they do most of it perfectly ably, I think they need to just focus on one style.