#12 Mini Mansions: The Great Pretenders – Album Review (Not really what you’d expect)

Carry on reading if you’ve listened to: 

• T-rex 
• MGMT
• Arctic Monkeys
• Peace 

The singles were very feel-good, ‘any emotions‘, ‘fallout‘ and ‘creep‘ were the main singles from this album and they were impressive, they did make me feel good (bit cheesy). Its an album that was released in perfect time for summer. This is just because this album sounds at its best blasting from your garden under 20 degree heat in the middle of August.

I guess Mini Mansions could be described as new age glam rock, take T-Rex, add 2015 to the release date of the album, and there you have it. You could almost imagine them wearing 6 inch cuban heels, black and white victorian outfits and having shoulder length hair, perfectly combed  to look like an 18th century vampire.

They look nothing like that by the way, its just the image of them I get in my head.

Listening to track 3 ‘creeps’, it sounds like it could almost be played at the end of a old fashioned school disco when the only people left are the couples ‘in love’, swaying from side to side.

No surprise really that Alex Turner wanted to feature on an album whereby Mini Mansions and Arctic Monkeys‘ (last album AM) carry a relatively crucial similarity. The tone and mood of both the albums. The Great Pretenders and AM, sound almost equally as wishy-washy in places; but the singles amped up from the other tracks which are of a gradual pace.

Alex Turner featuring on the song ‘vertigo‘ isn’t so that the song has any edge (because Alex Turner does not provide that), but I think its more to help these guys get a foot in the door of mainstream music. It is quite a good PR stunt but I would have gone with someone else. (may be…)

They’re a band that for me, personally, I have to be in the mood to listen to this type of glam rock (much like T-Rex). To be honest, Im at a crossroads, I don’t like the Arctic Monkeys, but I like MGMT and T-Rex. However, I do think it falls more towards the MGMT and T-Rex category of music rather than the Arctic Monkeys, which is good news.

• Would I buy the album? – Yes, already bought it.
• Would I see them live? – Yeah why not, I’d have to be in the mood though.
• Is this album better than ‘AM’ by the Arctic Monkeys? – Yeah, but I do hate the Arctic Monkeys which helps.
• Potential Awards? – I think so, but only the Mercury I reckon.
• Are they touring? – A number of small gigs around the country and a few early slots at a few random festivals. 

Header Photo Credit: livewire1350.com

#11 Mumford and Sons: Wilder Mind – Album Review (Reading and Leeds… right)

Carry on reading if you’ve listened to:

• Imagine Dragons
• James Bay 
• Of Monsters and Men
• Ben Howard

Reading and Leeds. Mumford and Sons. Something doesn’t sit right. I don’t mind Mumford and Sons. I can do without them quite easily, but their first album was good. This one is OK. Its  not great and certainly not worth a headline slot at Reading and Leeds. The new album is very James Bay, and I hate James Bay. They’ve sort of just decided to speed things up with this album, compared with their others. Which is fine, no problem, but no songs stand out at all. Out of 12 songs on the album, you would haver thought ONE song would have stayed in my mind for at least 5 minutes after listening to it, but none of them have, thats not good. Probably doesn’t help with the fact that nearly 90% of the songs sound exactly the same. After “snake eyes” I just stopped listening and started writing this. I wasn’t going to miss anything new or exciting anyway.

They are good live and they have enough fans TO headline Reading and Leeds (mainly due to their heavy, middle of the road, Radio 2 fan base) but compared with what Reading and Leeds fest stands for and for what this festival once was, I think this album is just not up to par. (Die hard Mumford and Sons fans will give me stick for that but its true). Their trying to be too many things. Country, pop, folk, indie, wishy woshy singer/songwriter type of vibe. If you try and put all of these things together into one album, then its just not going to sound great. Very disappointing.

• Would I buy the album? – Nooooo.
• Would I see them live? – Noooooo.
• Are they better than any artist mentioned at the top of the post? – Possibly, apart from Of Monsters and Men.
• Potential Awards? – I think so, but just because they have a very strong, middle of the road, Radio 2 fan base. 
• Are they touring? – All I care about with this is, is that they are headlining Reading…

Header Photo Credit: mumsonfan.com

#10 The Vaccines: Minimal Affection – Song Review (I give up)

Carry on reading if you’ve listened to:

• Babyshambles
• Palma Violets
• The Killers 
• Hard Fi

So, first released record from the new album. Based on “Minimal Affection”, what can we expect? Utter Horsesh*t. Seriously. This song is more dreary, mundane, lacklustre and everything in between, compared to what they’ve produced before. It just sounds like it could do with the input of a musician who is aware that modern “rock” can be a bit more upbeat and with a bit more pace about it. Someone who recognises the idea that records can have a bit more oomph about them. I’m starting to get the feeling that The Vaccines are just falling into what The Killers did a few years ago. Which was starting out in their musical career on fire with some absolute belters but then slowly dissolving into a teaming mass of sh*t and disappointment. With the Killers it went from “Mr Brightside” and “When We Were Young” to somehow ending up with crap like “spaceman” and “human“. It makes no sense!! With the Vaccines, its worryingly similar. They go from tunes like “norgaard” and “if you wanna” to stuff like “Minimal Affection” and “melody calling“, wheres the logic? If you’ve got 4 minutes of your life to waste:

I won’t buy the album, too risky. Their last album was average at best, so I think this one may be a record too far. Sorry for quite a depressing post.

• Would I but this single? – Definitely not
• Would I see them live? – Seen them once, thats enough.
• Are they better than The Killers? – Just. But only due to the killers having had a nightmare in recent years.
• Potential Awards? – I really hope not.
• Are they touring? – Yeah. At a few festivals and gigs across the country. But anyway…

.Done.

Header Photo Credit: fanart.tv

#9 Disclosure: Bang That – Song Review (This is a bit of a change)

Carry on reading if you’ve listened to:

• Deadmau5
• Disciples
• SBTRKT
• Ten Walls

Its been a while, but sh*t, am I relieved their back. Besides from the live shows now and again, the public and the media haven’t really heard anything from these two since their incredible debut album “settle“. (Apart from the track “The Mechanism” that was released a while back).

To be honest, ‘Bang That” does sound very similar to “The Mechanism” in the way that jam is very similar to marmalade, pretty much the same just a few minor tweaks here and there.

Please refer to the Jam-Marmalade example on this one.

Disclosure have kept their cards close to their chest with an up and coming album but after releasing this track on Soundcloud a couple of weeks ago, I reckon a new album is nearly here. Thank f*ck for that.

It is a tune this new one, but I’m really wishing that the whole album won’t consist of basically just summer club tunes all the way through (which this sounds like). Like Settle, I hope they keep with their philosophy of chilled out dance records but with a slight twist of up and at em hits at the same time.
That was the great thing about their debut album, it was the way that you could easily relax with a beer, in the sun with sunglasses on and just chill with mates while listening, or… you could quite easily bang the album on at pre-drinks and everyone would be up for it.

Easy isn’t it.

Take note Disclosure.

• Would I but this single? – Probably wait for the album.
• Would I see them live? – Already have but yeah definitely. 
• Are they better than Deadmau5? – Their probably the best at what they do.
• Potential Awards? – I think they’ve probably got enough but yeah may be for the album.
• Are they touring? – Er… yeah. Thats all they’ve done in these last two years so yeah.

.Done.

Header Photo Credit: runthetrap.com

#8 Django Django: Album review – (Alternative is an understatement)

Carry on reading if you’ve listened to:

• The Ting Tings 
• Yeah yeah yeahs 
• Jungle 
• Wu-tang clan

Their first album was up for the Mercury a few years back and should’ve received greater plaudits than it did to be honest. It was sick. EA and FIFA obviously thought that is was good enough to use a couple tracks for their soundtrack.

But bands like this never gain global recognition do to be honest. Why? Because the public don’t like change and things being done differently, E.g hence the prominence of Radio 1 and Radio 2.

However, I’m personally quite content with them not being incredibly popular. Mostly because they won’t be over played and tortured on most radio stations.

The new album is pretty much the same as their first. Which is not a bad thing, it offers listeners some form of comfort; a sense that a decent band can reproduce a whole new record just simply, from what they know.
Im quite relieved that this group didn’t feel the need to completely change their musical philosophy every time they release a new record. Stick to what you know, and it’ll be alright.

On the other hand, this is not as impressive as the previous album, don’t ask why, its just that the songs on this record aren’t touching the heights of their last album. Simples.

Hopefully a third album is in the pipeline because they can be true alternative heavyweights.

• Would I buy the album? – I haven’t but may be…
• Would I see them live? – Yeah probably.
• Are they better than Jungle, The ting tings etc? – Nah not yet, may be the previous album but not this one.
• Potential Awards? – Not for this record.
• Are they touring? – Yeah playing at quite a few festivals this summer.

.Done.

Header Photo Credit: sonofmarketing.it