…Oh.
In a determined effort not to replicate their massive hit ‘Young Folks’ (one of the coolest tracks of the decade), and its’ parent album Writer’s Block, Peter Bjorn and John seem to have gone to the opposite extreme. This album seems to take its’ musical reference points as being the more, well, odd, parts of the thirty year plus careers of both Pere Ubu and Tom Waits.
Now, not repeating yourself is one thing, and many artists have successfully pulled off reinvention (see Bowie, Madonna, and even Blur), but this is a real curate’s egg of an album.Opener ‘The Feeling’ gives you a warning that if you’re expecting the same things as before you won’t get them, and then proceeds to confront. Tracks like ‘Living Thing’ and ‘I Want You!’ are genuinely lovely, but ‘Lay It Down’ seems more like a half-baked demo that ended up on the album and serves to unbalance it further.
Remember, guys, there is a difference between reinventing yourself and shooting yourself in the foot. Never mind commercially, I’m not sure that you’ve understood it artistically.
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