Athlete
Beyond the Neighbourhood
Disliking Athlete is like punching a kitten in the kidneys. Man, it feels good at the time but you harbour nothing but remorse and guilt for the rest of the day.
Beyond the Neighbourhood sounds like Athlete’s version of the latter part of Stereophonic’s dismal career – all those terrible songs about being knackered on the road, bored by hotels, exhausted with fame, blah, blah and blah. But what Athlete has done seems to be more interesting and unique.
Taking something of a cue from stalwart minimalist genius Brian Eno’s ‘Music for Airports’, Athlete has concentrated more on the mood and atmosphere of travel than the mundane details of their tour diary (Kelly, take note). The trademark electronic sounds have a slick pop production but remain steeped in a more experimental origin. The song titles lack this subtlety; I mean how much more obvious can ‘In Between 2 States’, ‘Airport Disco’, ‘The Outsiders’ and ‘Flying Over Bus Stops’ be? All this is rescued and forgiven by the lack of pretension in the tunes. Indeed, Airport Disco is a haunting and quite epic sounding track with several, heavily reverberating layers that will transcend the drab surroundings you’ll probably listen to it in. Not only that, on closer inspection the lyrics themselves are more than the sum of their parts – commenting on topics as wide-ranging as 9/11 tragedies and the biting hypocrisy of stereotypical English tourists.
To be honest there is no ‘Wires’ or ‘Half Light’ on this album but there’s sure to be a sleeper in there that will emerge in time. First single ‘Hurricane’ stomps along but I reckon this is a release where the album tracks will be appreciated much more than previous Athlete efforts.
Beyond the Neighbourhood occasionally reminded me of my days travelling by train while listening to Kid A; and what better way to describe an album clearly focused on those fidgety feelings of being in-between the two places you’d rather be? Buy this for someone who has to commute from work when the nights draw in – they’ll appreciate the gesture.
Tour under way.
www.athlete.mu
Russell Moore
Disliking Athlete is like punching a kitten in the kidneys. Man, it feels good at the time but you harbour nothing but remorse and guilt for the rest of the day.
Beyond the Neighbourhood sounds like Athlete’s version of the latter part of Stereophonic’s dismal career – all those terrible songs about being knackered on the road, bored by hotels, exhausted with fame, blah, blah and blah. But what Athlete has done seems to be more interesting and unique.
Taking something of a cue from stalwart minimalist genius Brian Eno’s ‘Music for Airports’, Athlete has concentrated more on the mood and atmosphere of travel than the mundane details of their tour diary (Kelly, take note). The trademark electronic sounds have a slick pop production but remain steeped in a more experimental origin. The song titles lack this subtlety; I mean how much more obvious can ‘In Between 2 States’, ‘Airport Disco’, ‘The Outsiders’ and ‘Flying Over Bus Stops’ be? All this is rescued and forgiven by the lack of pretension in the tunes. Indeed, Airport Disco is a haunting and quite epic sounding track with several, heavily reverberating layers that will transcend the drab surroundings you’ll probably listen to it in. Not only that, on closer inspection the lyrics themselves are more than the sum of their parts – commenting on topics as wide-ranging as 9/11 tragedies and the biting hypocrisy of stereotypical English tourists.
To be honest there is no ‘Wires’ or ‘Half Light’ on this album but there’s sure to be a sleeper in there that will emerge in time. First single ‘Hurricane’ stomps along but I reckon this is a release where the album tracks will be appreciated much more than previous Athlete efforts.
Beyond the Neighbourhood occasionally reminded me of my days travelling by train while listening to Kid A; and what better way to describe an album clearly focused on those fidgety feelings of being in-between the two places you’d rather be? Buy this for someone who has to commute from work when the nights draw in – they’ll appreciate the gesture.
Tour under way.
www.athlete.mu
Russell Moore
