Elbow’s new album could have gone one of two ways. After the unexpected but overwhelming success of 2008’s ‘The Seldom Seen Kid’, they could have carried on with a more commercial output to win over even more fans. Or, they could have retreated; returned to their former glories and appease the older fans with their more reserved brilliance. In the end, they’ve done both.
‘Build A Rocket, Boys!’ both keeps the ones-that-were-there-at-the-start happy and has enough nostalgic genius to attract even more to the band. It’s not ‘Seldom Seen Kid’ that’s for sure, there’s no ‘One Day Like This’ on here. Instead, anthemic alternative rock has been substituted for soft and subtle personal tales of front man Guy Garvey’s childhood, and it’s deceptively effective.
For this new effort, Garvey moved back to his childhood home of Manchester and returned back to his roots in a musical sense; ‘Build A Rocket Boys!’ streams with tales of family, first loves and a sad yet touching nostalgia. Opener ‘The Birds’ sets this from the off; a meandering beat that builds and builds via gentle electronic beeps and synthesised orchestras into a crescendo led by Garvey’s exceptional vocals.
‘Neat Little Rows’ is a moodier, more sinister allusion to home that lends sparingly from ‘Grounds For Divorce’, while the atmospheric ‘The Night Will Always Win’ is a sparse piano-led plea from Garvey-led for old friends. The nostalgia reaches fever point in closing track ‘Dear Friends’, a slow Coldplay-esque message with the touching lyrics ‘While so far away you are with me today/You are in my head, in my heart’. You’re even reaching for the tissues for album highlight ‘Lippy Kids’; a poignant tale of youth aimed at hooded adolescents, softly delivered and magnificently atmospheric, with the personal cry ‘Do they know those days are golden?’.
Where this effort differs from the previous release is its minimalism. Often, instruments are done away with leaving just a piano/guitar, a choir-led backing and the platform for Garvey’s distinctively extraordinary vocals to take centre stage. The jangling ‘With Love’ and pacier ‘Open Arms’ see Garvey lifted by a luscious backing chorus, while it’s just him, an acoustic guitar and a small keyboard riff for ‘Jesus Is A Rochdale Girl’, the tale of his first love. Garvey’s more a poet than a lyricist, and his talent is on full show here.
It may lack some of the bold and catchy melodies of ‘The Seldom Seen Kid’ but it more than makes up for it with its sheer heartfelt sentiments. It’s an actually heart moving album that will not struggle to gain fans, and with Guy Garvey’s glorious vocal performance, ‘Build A Rocket Boys!’ is a triumph.
A fine album and here's a live performance of my favourite track, 'Lippy Kids'.
NWR
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