This is the second full length album since the band's first live performance less than a year ago in April 2010, and sees the Staffordshire three piece blending their acoustic singer-songwriter ballads with classical Spanish guitar parts, rich vocal harmonies, equal parts Americana and Asian infusions, with sweetly melancholic lyrical content. There is a great deal of heart and soul in this record, beneath the layers of regret and heartbreak there is the sense that the sun will rise again and hope can spring from the darkness. The album kicks off with 'Michael Caine' an acoustic lead 70's throwback, with laid back Indian tinged drums, with an empassioned vocal and some powerful guitar parts. 'Deathdance' is a rousing, stand-out single of a track, starting out like 'Out of Time' era Peter Buck guitar parts, meandering through John Bramwell style vocals, with a beautifully memorable chorus that is the sound of a band who are totally comfortable with their sound and how to deliver it. 'Set In Stone' is altogether more ethereal, at once sweet and menacing, with intricate vocal harmonies and gentle pianos plonking along to accentuate the lyrics. 'Liar' is reminiscent of Cast and is certainly flying the Brit-pop (Union) flag proudly, with their own slant, the trade-mark Spanish guitar overtones that punctuate this album. 'Love Is Dead' is a nice enough song, if at times sounding a little close to The Verve, and perhaps if one were to be unkind. could be described as one of the more forgettable tracks on a good record. 'Buonasera's playful lyrics are tinged with sadness, as throughout this album, the lighter notes are often really disguising the darkest ones, 'Gutenaben, gutenaben, bonsoir, buenos noches de mucho, stuff I don't know, here comes stone henge..nothing I do will do'. 'Godfather' starts off a little too familiar and leaves you feeling the album perhaps is starting to run out of steam, but then hits you with a chorus so tender and yet so morose it forces you to re-examine, and the vocal harmonies and lyrics are as good as any on the album. 'Angel Heights' is a more up-tempo number with a flowing Eastern drum beat punctuating a late-1990's singer-songwriter type of ballad, with a lead guitar part that is just shy of Oasis-esque with the inclusion of some auxiliary notes. 'Dark Clover' is perhaps covering old ground again, but the last minute's crescendo and guitar solo offer some of the more interesting musical ideas on the album. The album closer 'Sticking Plasters' is a beautiful song with a rich vocal tone layered over a tender chord pattern, finding Ellis suitably wistful in the song's chorus and coda 'it's the way that it goes, there's no use crying. people will find answers, in the strangest ways...I know that we will survive, locked in a dream and a lullaby'. All in all this is a solid record with some really rich sections, and a few stand out tracks that are exceptional, however at times it is guilty of being a little predictable and samey and there are times when you are waiting for something bigger to kick in that never does. Admittedly this is not the bands style so perhaps that is unfair on my part, but just because the music is predominantly acoustic and quiet doesn't mean there has to be a lack of variety. Having said all this, I would still reccommend this album as it is predominantly great, it's just that it perhaps tails off a little towards the end. But the breathtaking 'Set In Stone', stirring 'Deathdance' and 'Sticking Plasters' are excellent songs that I will be coming back to time and again. In summary this is really quite a good record, with excellent production and certainly a band to watch out for in the future, as this is a vast improvement on the bands earlier efforts and I should imagine their next record could be truly exceptional.
You can download the album on Itunes here: -
Sniffing Round LA on Itunes
or check out the bands website for free tracks and loads of other info here: -
GhostTrains.net
