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Our album of the week (30th September 2011)
...according to our Clinton on Fri 30 Sep, 2011.
Its great to see Mitch Easter back in the producer's chair. I have never understood why this man isn't the go-to guy for every self respecting jangly guitar band. The man co-produced the first two R.E.M albums for God's sake as well as Pavement's 'Brighten the Corner's' and many other fabbo discs. He's a wise choice for producer of a band like Big Troubles as he has an ear for great chunky guitar sounds and is not afraid of injecting an experimental sonic edge. Thankfully then an album that could easily just be a slab of post Pains of Pure of Heart wishy wash is therefore a summery blast of glistening pop perfection. Its probably unfair on the band that I blather on about the producer too much as they come up with the...um... chops on at least half of these tracks. The dual songwriter set up ensures that there's more wheat than chaff and on opener 'She Smiles for Pictures' and single 'Sad Girls' they come off like the bastard offspring of Apples In Stereo and Teenage Fanclub. And if there's a couple of mid paced plodders half way through 'Softer than Science' and 'Never Mine' sound like The Feelies playing 'Ecstacy and Wine' era My Bloody Valentine. They hit paydirt on 'Engine' which reminds me of all those great 80's jangly US bands I used to love - Dumptruck, The Dangtrippers and Mitch Easter's own Lets Active to name but three. The nearest a contemporary band gets to this sound are the wondrous Real Estate. I really hope Big Troubles head further in this direction on their next record - a promising start then but there is the odd hint of something really special to come.
Led by gifted singer / songwriters Alex Craig and Ian Drennan, Big Troubles are that rare beast: a band with two distinctive musical voices that smoothly mesh to create one integrated personality. Their first album Worry (2010) and its attendant singles were excellent fuzz-pop records in their own right, but to make their new LP, the band brought in the legendary Mitch Easter, whose résumé includes stone-cold classics from the likes of REM, Pavement and his own Let's Active. With Easter's expert engineering help, Romantic Comedy is a masterpiece of modern pop; a perfect balance of grit and polish, gorgeous guitar sounds and angelic vocals, underpinned by a set of superb songs. The album kicks off with "She Smiles for Pictures," a brilliant slice of jangle-pop marked by an ear-tugging guitar lead and gorgeous choirboy vocals. "Misery" is a perfect two-and-a-half minutes of teen angst, fired by a huge bassline and echoed, chorused riffs that are as much '90s Brit Pop as they are '00s indie rock. First single "Sad Girls" is a lovely slice of updated power-pop based on a catchy stop-start verse that gives way to an indelible, spiraling chorus; this tune is as big and bright as they come. "You'll Be Laughing" gears down for a nuanced meditation on suburban ennui, showing that this band has more up its collective sleeve than just kicking out pop anthems. And so the record continues, through sure-fire entries into the noise-pop canon like the Boo Radleys-esque "Minor Keys," the lovely rush of "Softer Than Science" and the glam-tinged feedback-fest that is "Time Bomb." Big Troubles have that very rare combination of taste, skill and talent, and aided by Mr. Easter's recording acumen, they've created a virtually perfect modern pop album-one that tips its hat to choice bits of pop past and present, while at the same time delivering something totally fresh.
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