PunchBook

Grade: B

The Seldom Seen Kid has been getting a ton of high marks, some are calling it the best album of the year. I wouldn’t go even close to that far, but Elbow’s firt release in three years is still very good. Good not great. The front man of this Manchester band, Guy Garvey, once again has brought some very captivating lyrics to the table. Some of the more intersting lines you will hear on this album include ” Tower crane driver, oh so far to fall,” and ” I’m asking you to back a horse that’s good for glue…..and nothing else.” It’s the witty and fun lyrics that do it for me. Not to mention, Guy Garvey’s voice has that hollow, haunting sound much like Thom Yorke……not convinced he can belt it out like the Radiohead frontman though.

I’m not a huge fan of the soft tones and slow rythems so I had a tough time connecting to this album more so than other people have. Call it a bias toward hard rock, judging to personal tastes, or not knowing what the hell I’m talking about - but I didn’t think the music supported the brilliant lyrics at all. It’s because of this that I don’t think this record is worth the hype. It’s not Cast of Thousands.

The first single off this album Ground for Divorce is exemplary. It’s got some great intrumentals to back up the very clever lyrics. There is no doubt that this song is one of the best so far this year, however, I find myself asking the question -Is it that good, or does the sound stick out because it is surrounded by mediocrity? Either way, it’s more than worth my time, and money.