Loving the Ire and the Songs
 May 16th, 2009
Advantages:
It's great music more or less throughout
Disadvantages:
A couple of weaker moments
Recommendable:
Yes
Detailed rating:
Originality
Lyrics
Quality and consistency of tracks
How does it compare to the artist's other releases
Value for Money
more
  Soho_Black
About me:
"I always keep a stimulant handy in case I see a snake - which I also keep handy" - W. C. ...
Member since:30.08.2002
Reviews:403
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Review rated by 41 Ciao members on average: very helpful 
Having heard Frank Turner's "The First Three Years", an album which reflected on his first few years work as a solo artist after leaving Million Dead, there was no way I couldn't listen to more of his music. After all, the genre he works in, mainly folk based but with frequent rock twists, was one I enjoy listening to and my first experience with his work proved that he was very adept within that field. Compilations like that can be a bit patchy due to their nature, so it seemed only fair I judge him not only on that, but also on his studio work. Fortunately, the version of "The First Three Years" I picked up also came packaged with his second studio album, "Love, Ire & Song", so I didn't have to go too far to get a taste of Turner's studio work.
There's a very John Otway feel to the title of "I Knew Prufrock Before He Got Famous" and the style of the song is very similar; story telling lyrics with a folk feel to the music and some amusement to be found in the lyrics if you listen closely enough. This is a mid-tempo folk song, although it does get a more rock feel as the lyrics and the mood get a little angrier further in. The lyrics verge between amusing and frustrated, although the final lines "The only thing that's left to do / Is get another round in at the bar" is certainly one of the best ideas to close a song with I ever remember hearing. Following a great closing line to the previous song, "Reasons Not To Be An Idiot" is one of the finer song titles you'll come across. This is a much more rock-influenced song, with the guitar line sounding very much like something from Ash or Feeder and it's probably as mainstream as Frank Turner has ever come. It's an up-tempo rock song with occasional folk touches and as a rock fan, this is certainly a favourite of mine,
on this album at least.
The folk opening to "Photosynthesis" reminds me a little of his track "Heartless Bastard Motherfucker", which is a great song and this one comes very close. It's an up-tempo, very upbeat folk track with a slight rock influence and a very country and western sounding violin solo later in the song. The lyrics do take the occasional down beat turn, but the music stays the same as a decent counter point to it and it's sure to get your foot tapping because of the beat and tempo. The acoustic guitar intro to "Substitute" reminds me a little of Tenacious D's "Tribute", speeded up a little. That's not the only common ground, as some of the lyrics here are quite amusing, with the lines "If music was the food of love / Then I'd be a fat romantic slob" always raising a smile for me. This is a largely upbeat and up-tempo folk influenced song. Once again, though, Turner shows his speciality of matching down beat lyrics with a jaunty musical accompaniment and the two work very well together. Indeed, the main let down to this song is that it's very short, at well under 3 minutes and I'd be quite happy if it went on a lot longer than it does.
"Better Half" slows the tempo down a lot, for what is essentially a downbeat ballad. It's mostly piano led instead of the guitar led songs we've had previously and lacks some of the folk touches that we've become used to from Frank Turner, generally as well as on this album. However, that works very well, as the lyrics are sung with enough emotion and yearning that comes across better with the simple music and when it becomes more of a rock song later on, I do feel that some of the lyrical content becomes a little buried under the music. The title track largely sums up the feeling of folk music as the music of protest. "Love, Ire & Song" tells the story of what happens when the protestors of the past have grown up and moved on. It borrows some of the attitude of his earlier song "Thatcher Fucked the Kids", although it's turned more inwards than outwards. It's a folk-based song musically, although the lyrics borrow some of the anger from Turner's punk roots. The combination gets the message across wonderfully. It's one worth listening to carefully and musical backing doesn't get in the way of the message here like it did occasionally on the previous track.
The intro to "Imperfect Tense" has a folk rock feel that reminds me of a Mundy song, although annoyingly I can't remember the title. Much like "Reasons Not to be an Idiot" earlier in the album, it's a quite mainstream indie-rock song, with the same up-tempo and upbeat feel to it. Also like that song, it appeals to the rock fan that I am and is one of my favourites. "To Take You Home" is the most obviously folk influenced song here. It tells the story of him meeting someone and it's also the most upbeat song lyrically that he's done. It's a beautifully told story, but it's quite weak musically, especially given the two songs it comes between and it suffers from immediate comparisons. It's a decent enough track, but it's a bit mid-tempo and folk influenced and doesn't really go anywhere, as the point seems to be to tell the story rather than focus on the music and you can see where the focus has shifted a little.
One of the reasons that "To Take You Home" seems so weak is that it's immediately followed by what I think it the best Frank Turner song I've heard. "Long Live the Queen" is another beautiful piece of storytelling, this time about a friend on the verge of death. Musically, it's a largely fairly upbeat, mid tempo folk orientated song, although the last verse and chorus slow things down and ramp up the emotion for a lovely end to a sad song. Whilst the song may be nothing particularly special musically, it's such a heart-wrenching story that it begs to be listened to again, and I always do. "A Love Worth Keeping" seems like a natural pairing with "To Take You Home", although it's a much better song. It's a mid-tempo folk song, but it's largely played with an electric guitar rather than the acoustic and there's an almost military sounding drumbeat behind it that helps the song along. The music does tend to overshadow the lyrics here, but as it's a decent folk-rock song that reminds me of some old Simple Minds tracks, that's not a bad thing at all.
"St Christopher is Coming Home" starts with a very jaunty guitar intro that immediately gives the song a folk feel. The lyrics aren't quite as upbeat or as up-tempo, but this is a song driven along by the music and on that ground, it's a wonderfully jaunty folk song that will get your foot tapping very early on in the song and keep it that way. After several failed attempts to record the rock version of "Jet Lag" that appeared on "The First Three Years", the album version became a piano led track. And what a track it is, reminding me very much of Mundy's "Gin & Tonic Sky" in both music and in attitude. It's a lovely folk ballad with a very downbeat feel to it and a beautifully emotional lyric that proves to be the perfect end to an album.
Apart from a couple of slightly weaker moments, this is another great album from Frank Turner. If you're a fan of folk-rock influenced acts like Mundy, you'll find a lot to enjoy in here. Those who prefer their rock a little more mainstream may find him a little too folk influenced, but if you want to broaden your horizons in that direction, then there is no better place to start. Even if the music isn't to your taste, the story telling in some of the lyrics is impressive and quite often highly amusing. The album can be had from eBay for as little as £3.00 on its own, or packaged together with "The First Three Years" from £2.99. On Amazon and Play, the single album is available from £6.98 and the double album from £8.95, although they can be downloaded together from Amazon for £6.99. Whilst I would happily pay the money for this album alone, as it's 46 minutes of very decent folk-rock, "The First Three Years" is another impressive album, so it's definitely worth getting both, given that the prices aren't significantly different for buying that way.
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22.05.2009 01:17
Not for me, but a quality review. ^_^
16.05.2009 21:23
Well reviewed indeed. Frank never disappoints, and I am eagerly awaiting his next album, due out later this year. His debut, Sleep is for the Week, is a great album too, and you should give it a listen!!
16.05.2009 14:58
Not for me xx