From
Italy and New York, Life & Limb comprise of Andrea Mangia and Mike
McGuire. This, their follow-up to 2008’s
longplayer, Drawn In Basic, is ten tracks of lovely, well crafted, synth-based
pop with a very endearing quality.
Opener,
Fingers Fall, starts with a heartbeat type throb, light percussion enters and
vocals which are soothing and calming.
At little over two minutes it’s a worthy opener, and, very catchy. A chorus that isn’t over repetitive, but,
still lingers on well over the track has finished. There’s a slight 80s, feel about Nadja. That’s in a good way, not a bad one. Let’s
not forget that the early-mid 80s was the last music ‘explosion’ we had in the
UK – like it or not, there hasn’t been anything like it since, and, the way we
are absorbing reality pop competitions at the moment, there won’t be for some
time. Again, another very memorable
chorus, and currently, a popular hit on YouTube.
Apparently,
Mangia and McGuire share a love of De La Soul, and it’s actually pretty easy to
see. Not in a rap or hip-hop sense, but,
with the delicate insertion of sounds and clicks and offbeat gestures. Carry On as a backing track, wouldn’t sound
out of place on for instance, Three Feet High And Rising. It’s gorgeous, as are many of the tracks on
this album, and there is its strong point.
Kneel Therefore starts with an almost oriental twang. It moves along with gentle ease. To be honest, I struggle to pick out many of
the words on this album, but, that is indicative of its strength – the songs
are still enjoyable in a rewarding way.
Wild
Coast is an instrumental, and, at less than one and a half minutes, I’ll be
honest, I don’t really see the point of it.
I
want to like Before The Flame And The Flood, but bizarrely, it makes me feel
sick. The music up to the chorus fades
in and out, and when I’m driving, it makes me feel quite nauseous. The chorus is lovely and whimsical, and it’s
a shame that the lead up has such an effect on me – at least it’s given me a
new musical experience!
Selling
A Storm is probably the highlight of the album.
Great bass sound to start, simple but memorable chorus. Words that I can understand. Mangia and McGuire really do have the ability
to knock out a good tune and this is proof of that. Some similarities in vocal tone with Neil
Tennant whilst Cage Seeks Bird reminds me of Bryan Wilson and the Pet Sounds
vibe – perfect melody, gentle vocals and a little bit of strange. Lovely stuff.
The
album ends with the two longest tracks – Moments Fading and Ghostly
Incantations. Both are accomplished
songs. The former rattles along never
seeming to go anywhere, but, at the same time covering lots of ground. Perfect music to drift away to, as is the
final track which begins slowly and lazily.
Building slowly to a bigger, fuller sound before fading and fizzling
away into the distance.
There’s
something about this album that I really can’t put my finger on. I actually can’t stop listening to it. Very enjoyable and incredibly listenable.
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