Right, first the legal stuff. You may or may not be aware that it is now law that any writings about Starsailor must contain all of the following words:- Tim, Jeff, Nick, Neil and Van. Optional extras include Angst, Verve, Mercury (in conjunction with award, not stiff flamboyant front man) and Coldplay. So with the lawyers satisfied let’s get on with the review.
A brief history:- Starsailor are four lads from the Lancashire town of Chorley. A place whose previous claims to fame were- 1) It’s quite near Preston, and 2) It sounds a bit like seminal children’s TV village “Chigley”. All in all not exactly Las Vegas (in fact not exactly Chigley.) They are also named after a Tim Buckley album (aha- see above) and they ARE heavily influenced by the other names mentioned. (For those who don’t know the missing surnames are Buckley Mk2, Drake, Young and Morrison- a promising firm of estate agents if ever there was one.)
So are they worthy of the hype? Well, actually, yes. Their sound is at times moody without being miserable, dark without being depressing, recognisable without being repetitive and loving without being Chris DeBergh.
Singer James Walsh has a voice like the proverbial angel. The music manages to sound both minimalist and full at the same time. Piano features heavily, guitars less so. The lyrics are accomplished but not inspired. Don’t get me wrong there are some nice touches and there is certainly potential in the writings but at present it’s a bit hit and miss. For example am I the only one who thought “Don’t you know you’ve got your daddy’s eyes - your daddy was an alcoholic” a bit predictable. And I’m not too sure how many freeways there are in Chorley- although I think nearby Camberwick Green has applied for planning permission.
So the singles are all here:- “Fever”, “Good Souls” and “Alcoholic”. It might be the familiarity of these songs but I actually prefer the previously unreleased ones. “Tie Up My Hands”, sadly not an S&M tribute song, is still a quality opener. Good drum beat, slowly building guitars, leading to big choruses and a finale fully utilising James’ exceptional voice.
“Poor Misguided Fool” is a bit of a rocker, at least in terms of this album. It rolls along to jaunty keyboards and has you singing along 2 minutes into the first listen. It also has a sumptuous change of pace midway through, before returning you back to where you came from.
When I first heard “Lullaby” live I thought it was fantastic and a sure-fire single. It might still be but, and this might just be my imagination, it seems to have lost something in production. Don’t know what, and it’s still very good with a lovely melody, but it doesn’t now make the hairs on my neck stand-up as it once did. Shame.
Other main song of note is “Talk Her Down”. This is definitely the one with most bite on the album. Powerful and with a bit of spite in the vocals. Probably the best song here.
Other than to say that there’s a couple of old b-sides here-the title track and a reworked “Coming Down”, which isn’t nearly as good as the original, that’s about it.
This is without doubt a very good debut album, in fact it’s very good, debut or not. It will be nominated for next years Mercury Prize (aha, aha- see above again) and is destined to be this years Coldplay/ Travis/ Moby coffee table album, possessed by civil servants and financiers who buy 4 albums a year. However Mr and Mrs middle-class 2.4 children do occasionally get it right and this is one of those occasions.
This is well worth your attention and promises greater things- let’s hope they deliver.
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
AlthoughLove Is Here, Starsailor's anxious, soulful folk and urban blues nuanced inaugural ... more
album will be less of a culture shock to any scene-follower who experienced, say, Tom McRae's debut from 2000, it will certainly jolt the core beliefs and common...
Postage & Packaging: £1.21 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
Although Love Is Here, Starsailor's anxious, soulful folk and urban blues nuanced ... more
inaugural album will be less of a culture shock to any scene-follower who experienced, say, Tom McRae's debut from 2000, it will certainly jolt the core beliefs and commo...
Postage & Packaging: Free! Availability: Usually dispatched within 1 to 3 weeks...
Advantages: Great music, they can actually play, superb vocals and lyrics, topped off with nice pianos and guitars Disadvantages: Hidden track (what is the point of them?)
Oct 17th, 2001
very helpful by (100%):
![River Is Wide, The [Remastered] - Forum (The)](http://imagesb.ciao.com/iuk/images/products/small/251/prod_small-6006251.jpg)
