Album 14

[FacelessSenseOfVoid]

Originally Posted by hummingbird

I wasn't criticizing ...even if you hadn't pre-ordered ...up to you what you do ....personally can't be bothered with the faff of the VPN ...I'm that lazy ...happy to wait a week .... currently more excited about Abba's new album

Oh I know you weren't criticising but I was just making light of the point that there shouldn't be any problem with being able to hear it when it was supposed to be released if the only reason was a delay to the bloody vinyl or if the real reason was to avoid clashing with Iron Maiden. If it's finished it should be accessible!

[hummingbird]

Originally Posted by FacelessSenseOfVoid

Oh I know you weren't criticising but I was just making light of the point that there shouldn't be any problem with being able to hear it when it was supposed to be released if the only reason was a delay to the bloody vinyl or if the real reason was to avoid clashing with Iron Maiden. If it's finished it should be accessible!

Oh I seeeeeee. Yeah seems daft ... Praps they'll change their minds and it'll be there on Monday for us lazy articles

[Porco]

Originally Posted by Son of Stopped

I think this could be the last throw of the dice if it flops.

I think the band will be fine, but I can’t get past the comedic potential of the notion of a floppy dice!

[hummingbird]

The last throw of the dice for what? They've had top 5 albums since lifeblood

[*Found That Soul*]

Originally Posted by hummingbird

The last throw of the dice for what? They've had top 5 albums since lifeblood

And they’re sure to have another one here. I think the days are long gone of infiltrating the wider public. 90 % of sales are to harden manics fans.

Album 14 and personally the majority sounds so different to what they’ve done before.

[Son of Stopped]

It's still real to me goddamnit! *Cries

Yeah, I see no problem with Nicky wanting another number one record.
Also, Google radio listenership. Radio 2 has two extra digits more than Radio 1.
It's crazy!!!

[IntlDebris]

Originally Posted by FacelessSenseOfVoid

Release dates are shit anyway, all to do with chart positions and it's not like they will gain or lose any followers through this leak which came from a proper source! In these days of digital distribution bands should just be able to drop an album unannounced.

One reason I enjoy a lot of underground music is that there's none of this crap - things come out as soon as the physical copies exist, or often even sooner. Bandcamp has revolutionised music as much as Spotify, it's wonderful to sometimes get music within a few days of it being recorded.

The digital-first route seems to be becoming more popular, with pop albums being 'dropped' out of the blue - Kanye's obviously a forerunner in this area, and Taylor Swift's two folky albums last year being completed without label knowledge (apparently - I get the feeling that aspect was overplayed a bit) - and a lot of albums being released digitally with a vinyl pre-order these days. Roddy from Idlewild's album came out in May, CDs were shipped last month and vinyl is finally coming along in October. It's not so great for those of us who actually stick to physical media for listening, having to wait months or listen to it in an unsatisfying way, but it's definitely becoming the norm. So many physical copies these days are just made for collections anyway, hence the fucking stupid multiple coloured vinyl nonsense (that, sadly, is probably keeping numerous bands and labels in the black) that I suppose it doesn't make much of a difference for that many people.

I've still only listened to Orwellian once, so the album will be all pretty much new to me. Everything about it, from the Lifeblood comparisons to its poppiness, really appeals to me, but I'm actually struggling to feel especially excited about it for some reason (probably because I didn't like Orwellian). Some of the comments in here aren't helping. That said, I dragged my heels about buying RiF and it's become one of my favourite Manics records, so who knows.

[Son of Stopped]

Originally Posted by IntlDebris

Some of the comments in here aren't helping. That said, I dragged my heels about buying RiF and it's become one of my favourite Manics records, so who knows.

Relax! It'll be a Manics album. From the sounds of it you might need a few plays of it to sink in. Not been that way since The Love Of Richard Nixon. Everything since has been instant.
Hopefully we won't have to go through the seven stages of grief with it.
Switch off expectations. Go in to it fresh. Imagine it's a new band. I don't know. I won't hear it until Friday. And could be hearing it sober as well. It'll all be down to what you think of it.
If anything, think of the journey of acceptance you can go on with it.
Think of Hancock trapped in a lift and becoming friends with the lift pressy person at the end.
Everything has to be instant these days. But humanity is not a Polaroid. Oh fuck I'm writing that one down

[Suicide Aldi]

Originally Posted by IntlDebris

Some of the comments in here aren't helping.

Haha everyone on Forever Delayed basically hates the manics, so I wouldnt worry.

[hummingbird]

Originally Posted by Suicide Aldi

Haha everyone on Forever Delayed basically hates the manics, so I wouldnt worry.

Not quite all

[UEF]

I’ve just gone to press play on Spotify and it’s been pulled from my downloads

[beautifuldistortion]

I think all lifeblood comparisons should stop.
I really can't hear or even feel anything in that vein.
Well, maybe at a push Sapporo could fit.

After a good ten listens now I've gone from thinking it was funny to hear them do ABBA to thinking it's going to get very few future plays by myself to then thinking I need to cheer up and just go with it like I said I would.

At least it's making me think!

As said it definitely feels like an album and not a collection of songs but ultimately I think it's going to be in the bottom half of their best albums list.

I love Lifeblood, and Rewind the film so it's not all about heavy rock for me but I am kind of hoping for some raw guitar and heavy drums next time.
And yes I do want a next time.

Hopefully we can have a concept album like Even in Exile.
We've definitely had enough songs about being in the Manics!

[starfucker]

Here are my thoughts after four listens:

Still Snowing - Atmospheric and shiny production. Glacial seems to be a word that keeps coming up and I agree with that on this track. Lifeblood-esque with the reverb and echo. JDB's voice sounds great on it. Decent.

Orwellian and The Secret He Had Missed - We've all heard these by now. They are probably objectively the "best" and most familiar Manics-for-the-radio songs on the album and I can see why they were released first.

Quest For Ancient Colour - I always find other people's dreams boring unless I'm in them. Obviously I'm not in this one. It sounds like Wire's given up lyrically. There's some decent poetry and some sixth-form garbage in the lyrics. Uninspiring. No melody. The Spirit Of Radio guitars are really out of context and they don't fit the song at all.

Don't Let The Night Divide Us - The lyrics are even more cringe-worthy when you hear them sung to this bouncy annoying melody. In the chorus the vocal melody is the same as Let's Spend The Night Together. The "this is a warning, not a prayer" section is pretty decent but then spoilt by the cringey "Eton" part.

Diapause - Haunting, piano-led ballad. Dreamy and wistful, quite pleasant. The sparse lead guitar in the background is very reminiscent of Even In Exile. I like this one but it's nowhere near A+ Manics. It's a decent album track, nothing more, nothing less. The Bunnymen influence on this one is very noticeable.

Complicated Illusions - Melancholic Abba as promised and my favourite track on the album. It stood out straight away for me. It is one I will put on playlists although it's not up there with other songs they've done in a similar vein, particularly Welcome To The Deadzone.

Into The Waves Of Love - Boy From The Plantation guitar riff under pianos. More uptempo and more melodic than other tracks on the album, although lacking any catchy hook. The backing vocals are very un-Manics and sound out of place.

Blank Diary Entry - Acoustic guitar intro then Lanegan comes in and his voice fits Wire's lyrics in a both comfortable yet at the same time disconcerting way (it's a good thing in my opinion). The dynamic of the two voices doesn't work. They don't sound good together like we are used to on Manics duets. It sounds like two different songs shoved together. Filler.

Happy Bored Alone - Screams B-side. Substandard. Really lazy lyrics that clearly did not inspire any creative spark from either James or Sean (maybe Wire wrote the music for this one?). I don't know why it's on the album. It's not up to scratch.

Afterending - Nostalgic, sentimental and pleasant-sounding, but totally lacking in melody. It has grown on me after four listens of the album, but I can't see it growing any further. The "La-la-la" parts are unnecessary and out of place on a Manics song.

I really wanted to like this album, and after hearing Orwellian and TSHHM my initial thoughts were that it wasn't going to be immediate or full of catchy bangers. I was prepared to put the homework in and try to like it, and I will persevere. Hopefully something will click, but for now I'm pretty underwhelmed.

[savemejebus]

Originally Posted by Suicide Aldi

Haha everyone on Forever Delayed basically hates the manics, so I wouldnt worry.

Expecting better/effort/quality-control doesn't equal hatred

[Porco]

Originally Posted by savemejebus

Expecting better/effort/quality-control doesn't equal hatred

Not liking something doesn’t equal some imagined objective truth that it was down to lack of effort either though.