Idlewild - Post Electric Blues

If you’ve ever lost your heart to a soaring guitar hook or swooned over twisted lyrics of vague existential angst (without resorting to the full blown self-indulgent posturing of Morrissey, of course), then you’re likely to fall in love from the first track to the last on ‘Post Electric Blues’. Somehow this album captures the very essence of what has always made indie so great in the first place, while skilfully avoiding sounding nostalgic for even a second. This is a truly beautiful, storming return to outstanding form from those steadfast scene stalwarts Idlewild (who, incidentally and pretty unbelievably have been knocking out their minor classics for nearly 15 years now, over 7 largely delicious albums).

‘City Hall’ is a perfect example of textbook Idlewild semi-genius - swirling, dizzying jangly guitars cascading round Roddy Woomble’s pure-as-fresh-snow vocals, which amazingly sound like they are simultaneously made of steel and delicate, fragile crystal. Elsewhere, first single ‘Readers & Writers’ is the joyous sound of the military teddy bear band from Toy Town conducted by Jarvis Cocker. ‘Dreams Of Nothing’ has a lonesome folksy violin blending over the piano refrain; in the hands of say, the abominable Corrs, this would be pretty hideous but here it’s a masterful blending of the traditional and modern without a hint of schmaltz. It’s damn difficult to explain why it works here, something about the honest pure, true grit of the band that makes them ooze a genuine lack of phoniness which is totally disarming. Here’s a band that’s always been ‘for real’, avoiding the pompous trappings of mega-stardom, in fact, Idlewild are a far superior band to a band who started around the same time - those stadium fillers Coldplay - but have never felt a similar need to resort to shows of increasing pomp rock bravado to make their quiet dignified point loud and clear. That’s not to say they’re above making the odd clanger, though - ‘Post Electric’ starts off with some damn impressive guitar wailings but they drag on too much, veering down the tragic one-way street of noodling. Annoyingly, if they could have shaved off a couple of minutes of this guitar self-indulgence, it would be a truly ace track. But you have to search hard for the faults in this album, cos mostly its just a barrage of plain loveliness (and we haven’t even rhapsodised yet about the greatness of penultimate track ‘Circles And Stars’ which is simply a near-perfect blend of shimmering harmonies, butt-whopping drums and those trademark swooping guitar licks).

It would take a helluva lot to beat this album’s honest dyed-in-the-wool indie goodness. The particular genius of the boys from Idlewild is to remind you that even after so many years have passed, indie can still be a valid and totally vital, life-affirming genre with still so much to explore and offer. Just a bunch of searing hot guitars, melancholy tales of an outsider’s dissatisfaction and a boy blessed with a fallen angel voice is all they’ve ever needed to prove their worth. Their courage and conviction not to tamper with this simple formula and yet still make it sound as fresh as it does on ‘Post Electric Blues’ is their particular alchemy.