These New Puritans

It's totally song length snobbishness, considering that the most immediately involving song on the album to my ears is "Three Thousand".

hmm

maybe listening to the individual songs on Youtube isn't the best way to approach this record

although stuff like 'attack music' and 'hologram' and 'fire-power' doesn't grab me

we want war just has a way cooler build and narrative flow, plus the choral and woodwind chord-progressions in the second half are staggering

try maybe listening to the album before announcing that the entire thing is terrible...?

it totally ISN'T song-length snobbishness, although there's a possibility that what they're trying to do is best served by a lengthier canvas - all about subtle shifts and increments

Dan the thing is that I have listened to all the songs! Just not in order

If there's one thing this album ISN'T about it's subtlety.

well, there's something that seems sophisticated and fully worked-out about WWW, especially in the chord-sequences and sonic layering, that lacks in the other songs - maybe I'll come round to them

lol

I decided to check out earlier stuff by them and was repelled by the first 10 seconds of "Elvis", after which it suddenly became incredibly compelling

I mean, at least The Horrors had the decency to follow up their staggering epic 'wait this isn't that scrawny buncha garagey tryhards' preview single with an album that kinda lived up to it

haha ok I'll stop now

no you won't

don't get you can you like "we want war" and not "drum courts"

ok yeah who's 2011's breakout indie-gone-classy band gonna be, dibs on Two Door Cinema Club

there's a distinct sense of nerdiness to this band...or maybe it's that it's ambitious in a really transparent way, like they're just forcing together all these elements and it doesn't quite work for me.

not a big fan of the album as a whole either, it's kind of monotonous and cold and humorless. sounds like liars without the elements of fun and chaos. i do like "we want war."

i'm a sucker for the great reich-ian art/prog rock jams on this album, like "5," which even has what sounds like an oboe or two

monotonous and cold and humorless

A massive selling point! (Well, for me.)

This is a really creative album and I'm happy it's getting some love in the UK

Ned, have you investigated this yet?

i'm a sucker for the great reich-ian art/prog rock jams on this album, like "5," which even has what sounds like an oboe or two

well, "5" is really good as well. but the rest can hang.

― RIP la petite mort (acoleuthic), Tuesday, 20 July 2010 17:36 (4 months ago)

Its undoubted creativity is what's making me sad that it's not clicking for me. I'd like to explore its nuances, but that would involve actually listening to it.

NickB: Not the full album but the singles = A+. Planning on snagging it later this month but right now the backlog of stuff to work through sits next to my desk and mocks me...

Oh okay. Wasn't sure how much you were aware that this was a Graham Sutton production.

Believe me, that is a further selling point.

If this album wasn't so relentlessly monochromatic, I would not be nearly as into it.

Fire-Power was the standout to me ofl.

So much Brit press love now. This American wasn't as hip as the ones above on this thread to know about these guys till now.

Just missed out on a Pitchfork BNM, didn't turn up in the Mercurys at all. Rough treatment imo.

how can you "just miss out" on a BNM?

High score, but just below the threshold for BNM?

Isn't it ratings based? Like, 8.5 and up = BNM?

It got like an 8.4 in the same week as the Liars got an 8.6 iirc (just remember ilxor mentioning this at the time). Might be why it went under the radar for so long.

seriously though, this is the type of music I hear in my head

ilxors moaning about pitchfork scores?

not ratings based

i think we have been over this in multiple excruciating pfork threads

I don't read those (why because I am not crazy/masochistic)

"Fire-Power" is badass, huh

Isn't it ratings based? Like, 8.5 and up = BNM?

if i recall, they've given BNM to albums as low as 8.2 (maybe 8.1 even) that fit the core "indie rock" readership/demographic, while a bunch of stuff has gotten 8.3-8.5 range and not BNM -- usually it's metal, hip-hop, something noisy/experimental, etc.

not bitching about that btw, i think it makes sense given pfork's target readership

This whole album is fucking awesome.

i listened to this obsessively in Q1, need to pull it out again

This whole album is fucking awesome.

QFT

http://sickmouthy.wordpress.com/2010/12/19/hidden-until-now/

ok I'm seriously gonna have to give this a proper listen

Finally listening to the full thing myself. Such a perfect cold, pristine melodrama; the sequencing is essential.

Ned Raggett: NME apologist

Motherf***ers act like they forgot about V.A.S.T.

Damn, haven't thought of them in years...

Who/what is VAST?

trust me, you are better off not investigating

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VRXW1thQtPM