I'm a long standing music lover but this is
my first review of an album. Well, review may be is exaggerated, I'm simply
going to introduce a music album I liked. As I already said in my introduction, I'm
not particularly interested in the typical audiophile recordings but I'm keen
on the sound value and on the artistic content as much as I appreciate the
technical value of the recording. I want emotions to come from the artist as
well as from the Hi Fi components. The effect of a new cable gives me a thrill
only for the time necessary to appreciate the difference between the new and
the old one while a record gives me a long lasting emotion. (Monsieur De la
Palisse was a newcomer if compared to me). All this said, some time ago I came across
a LP of a rock band from Manchester, the Elbow, that I have learned are famous elsewhere but not in Italy.
Well, these five British guys have aroused my curiosity so I bought their whole
discography exception made for their last release, that I'll probably buy soon.
The LP that brought this group to my
attention is the first one of their official discography - Asleep in the Back -
published for the first time in 2001.
What intrigued me was at first the voice of
the front man - Guy Garvey - that is incredibly similar to that of our beloved
Peter Gabriel but with a husky note in it, typical of those that hang out in
smoky pubs. But there is something else, the voice of this singer has a
melancholy note, a positive sadness that permeates the romantic ballads of the
group resulting sweet but not sugary. The arrangements of the band are not
common, they use electronic effects and overdubs. This is not a record that can
be defined audiophile oriented but it sounds pretty good anyway. In my opinion the track that is more evocative
is " Don't Mix your Drinks"followed by "Coming Second" and "Can't Stop".
In conclusion, if these few lines have
kindled your curiosity, buying this new LP will result in a good investment
considering also the good price that one can find even on Amazon.
Of the other LP's in the catalogue I
listened to: *Cast
of Thousands (2003), Leaders
of the Free World (2005), **The
Seldom Seen Kid (2008) andBuild
a Rocket Boys! and I loved particularly the first and the third one that I
want to recommend to all those that love this music genre.
