|
When it comes to a group like
Everything Everything, being taken aback is par for the course. Their
tight, falsetto-ed sound is unlike anything else out there today - well, apart from
Animal Collective in places. Theirs is the sort of music likely to lead fellow
musicians to ask themselves: "Why didn't I think of that?"
Everything Everything aren't even just for show and their album wasn't a
formulated, calculated attempt to stir up some new scene.
They emerge from Manchester with a debut album to their name in the same
year as neighbours Delphic and HURTS, but their sound
couldn't be further removed from either. And why should everything sound the
same just because it originated from the same city in northern England, after all?
Sporting successful singles, re-recorded demos and sparkling new
efforts, it's a debut album that should displease no-one.
Production aligns with the band's erratic character, beginning with a
rampant opening trio of songs likely to leave you flabbergasted. The
old-fashioned joke that Everything Everything live up to
their name in every respect won't be going away any time soon. This
is a unique listen.
The slick giant that is My KZ Yr BF opens the album with unrivalled
confidence, the worthy high-speed-car-chase soundtrack Qwerty Finger
and the frighteningly inventive Schoolin' following. That's the
listener won over right there. The opening precedes a more diverse
two-thirds, blending tenderness and subtleties with unabashed,
full-frontal pop.
Jonathan Everything's vocals switch gloriously from 90 decibel
heights to softer hues. His Mancunian-tinged falsetto
dictates the altering pace, varying between the vulnerable Leave The
Engine Room to the jerky eccentricity of Photoshop Handsome. As the
band ceremoniously walk amongst R&B, acapella and synth pop,
Jonathan sounds comfortable within any surroundings.
The variety on show is one thing. But most impressive is the band's
ability to cross genres in the space of one song; Schoolin' begins as a
candidate for future Justin Timberlake hit before scattering
its parts into a cacophonous, sweetly-sung jewel, its previous melody
disposed of.
Inevitably, this all leads to an incohesive mess, to some
extent. There's the naivety that strikes many a band when recording a
debut album of such energy and experimentation. It's comparable to
Late Of The Pier's debut Fantasy Black Channel; a lot on show
but with hints of greater achievement. But Man Alive is a
step up from that. It could well be their masterpiece; their
scatterbrained work of art.
Should everything (everything) go according to plan, Man Alive will cause a
shift in the ground. Whilst an abolition of N-Dubz
might be too much to ask for, there's every chance that post-2010 hits
will have a rejuvenated feel to them. If however - and this is the
more likely of the two - Everything Everything fail to break the
higher ranks of the charts, they'll embed themselves as a cult
phenomenon with this debut.
Comments
| 
Everything Everything MP3s or CDs
Everything Everything on Spotify
INTERVIEW:
