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...according to our Brett on Thu 06 Nov, 2008.
...To The Walkmen. Which probably wasn't good 'cos I'm not really into these but if I don't give them a good review Brian will cave my face in with a frozen squirrel. So I'll resist the urge to mention Rod Stewart (who the singer bloke doesn't sound that much like on 'The Blue Route' or 'Canadian Girl', to be fair) and I definitely won't say that thing sounds like a Killers record with the treble turned up to 11. Aw, it's alright really... The fact that it manages to be both epic and understated at the same time is a bit of a feat and the chimeyness is quite nice. Fans will be lapping it up no doubt!The Truth: THE WALKMEN are from New York City. They consist of Hamilton Leithauser (vocals/guitar), Paul Maroon (guitar/piano), Walter Martin (organ/bass), Matt Barrick (drums) and Peter Bauer (bass/organ). 'The Blue Route' and 'Canadian Girl' are both lifted from 'You & Me', their fourth album which has spent the autumn picking up muchos media acclaim across the print and online board.
** THE WALKMEN are of course men of stealth and craft, dressed in black and, one wagers, distressed at the lack of loving care and attention applied to modern music. Eight years since the mighty 'We've Been Had' signalled the demise of Jonathan Fire*Eater and heralded the start of something even weirder, the 'You & Me' album - released on fierce panda on September 29th - found the enigmatic quintet in predictably moody form with fourteen tracks of fearsome ingenuity featuring their trademark clanging guitar, their spooked keyboards making like a gothic ice cream van on Mars, their drums rolling like a schooner in a force ten gale.
** Lead-off UK single 'The Blue Route' sets the unsettled mood perfectly then, with the bruised, mournful voice of Hamilton Leithauser howling "What happened to you? What happened to you?" as the song sweeps towards a lush climax. Frankly it's the greatest song they've released since 'The Rat'. Regrets? They've had a few. But then again, not too few to mention.
** Alternative wild cards THE WALKMEN may be but you can't fault their consistency: 2002 saw the release of 'Everyone Who Pretended To Like Me Is Gone', 2004 was the year of 'The Rat' and its parent album 'Bows & Arrows', 2006 witnessed 'A Hundred Miles Off' and precisely two more years later came 'You & Me'. So underestimate these five musical vagabonds at your peril.
** drownedinsound.com has already acclaimed 'You & Me', saying "This might be the best thing they've ever done", and we aren't about to disagree. To celebrate the release of 'The Blue Route' / 'Canadian Girl' THE
...according to sugar ray robinson.
Two of the finest songs of 'Me & You' make this release the best 7" of 2008.
So, what do you think? Best reviewer each month gets £10 off their next order!
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