Nashville – The Twilight Sad is a band that seems to have trouble fitting in. Critics and listeners give their music broad generic labels such as “post-punk” and “indie rock” that really tell nothing of their mature sound and their growing following. Ever-gaining popularity on both sides of “the pond,” this Scottish trio is back with a new record that makes the band even harder to nail down.
To move forward with their fourth release, Nobody Wants to Be Here and Nobody Wants to Leave, The Twilight Sad had to turn back the clock a little bit. The band took a page out of the book of their European new wave predecessors for their latest album, crafting songs that are just as comfortable on the Pretty in Pink soundtrack as they are on the ‘New Releases’ rack at the record store. The latest batch of tunes features the many intriguing layers of noise and sound that the band has been noted for on previous albums, with some additional modification.
James Graham’s thick Scottish accent is recorded in a much more Tears for Fears-like style, sounding as though the heavy notes he produces are echoing down a long, dimly lit hallway. The guitars (via Andy MacFarlane) on this record are recorded in a similar fashion, sounding as if they are in a whole different building than the rest of the instrumentation. Punchy bass, Mark Devine’s crisp drums, and a host of synthesizer sounds round out the tracks. The combination of these unique touches in an album set three decades ago is nothing short of heavy, melodic euphoria.
The album’s first single, “Last January,” is a prominent representative of the album’s throwback sound. Sweeping guitar and synth lines are combined with forward-pushing rhythm, topped off with gravy-thick vocals (the Proclaimers have nothing on Graham) dripping with cinematic melancholy.
The single bleeds well into “I Could Give You All That You Don’t Want,” a song with an infectious hook and a synth-chorus of ghostly backing vocalists. “It Never Was The Same” and “Pills I Swallow” both express that personal desperation and emotion that their titles beckon. “Leave The House,” “Sometimes I Wished I could Fall Asleep” and “Drown So I Can Watch” are all tracks that leave great pockets of open space for the notes to resonate. A much fuller sound can be heard on “In Nowheres,” a track with a more arena-like quality.
Nobody Wants to Be Here… is not an album for all occasions. It will be tough to find a track to put on the playlist you make for a loved one nor is it great for passing the miles on the treadmill at the gym. Its weighted sound and brilliant echoes make for a great soundtrack to writing papers, woodworking in the garage, or rainy day net surfing. The track layout and the quality of each song make it an album that you won’t need to skip songs. Each one transitions almost seamlessly into the next.
The Twilight Sad have been crisscrossing the U.S. in support of this release and will remain stateside playing shows until the end of November.
Pick up Nobody Wants to Be Here and Nobody Wants to Leave from The Twilight Sad (and the good folks at Fatcat Records) this Tuesday, October 28.
Kevin Ott
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