Midlake The Courage of Others
(Bella Union) Buy it from Insound
There’s a certifiable risk involved when a band tries to resurrect a long-dead, much-maligned subgenre from the shipwreck graveyard of pop music. Sometimes, if the public is ready for it like it was for the recent resurgence of ‘80s-style synth pop, you can be called a genius and musical pioneer. If they are not, well, I think you see where I’m going with this.
‘80s synth pop is one thing, but Denton, TX-natives Midlake take an, ahem, courageous risk with their third album, The Courage of Others, by attempting to bring back the geeky wizard-and-warrior prog-folk of bands like King Crimson, Jethro Tull and Fairport Convention. As for whether the public is ready for this revival or not, I can’t say. But I’m certainly not.
My beef with The Courage of Others isn’t necessarily with the compositions, which sometimes have the grace and resonance found in better folk acts like Fleet Foxes or Andrew Bird. It’s more in the delivery, the way it is stylized into some dank, monk-singing nonsense. Vocalist Tim Smith, for one, has all but abandoned the nasally, Thom Yorke-ian style that was featured prominently on previous albums Bamnan and Slivercork and The Trials of Van Occupanther in exchange for a catatonic, almost monosyllabic vocal style. The music, in response, aims for a slow-burning folk mystique complete with flute arrangements, but instead brings back bad memories of prog’s more embarrassing monuments.
I suppose this shouldn’t come as a surprise. Smith was documented as saying that he listens to more Jethro Tull than Radiohead, after all. More power to him. But even Tull tempered its softer, more indulgent motifs and dense lyrics with genuine, balls-to-the-wall rock. What Midlake has crafted here is monastery music – glorified Gregorian chants that achieve nothing if not snuff out the candle light in your head that represents your slowly melting interest.
Midlake have proven their musical competence on their past two efforts, so it should be noted that when the band occasionally decides to leave their hut and explore more exciting musical textures, there is some beauty to be revealed. Children of the Grounds does a great job of reinventing the riff of Fleetwood Mac’s Rhiannon, and Core of Nature successfully crosses over the band’s post-prog for modern ears.
Yet the vast majority of The Courage of Others is just cripplingly boring. It contains all of the pomp and bloat that most people remember of Jethro Tull and leaves out all of the texture and dynamics that most people forget. Smith may be a Jethro Tull superfan, and this may be his love note. But this album is a disservice to a bygone era that already faces unfair disparagement.
28 January, 2010 - 18:54 — Andy Pareti
Comments for The Courage of Others review
No.
Bullshit. I'm not going to give you the satisfaction of explaining why. I'm so sick of reviewers listening to an album (not even) once and thinking they know what the hell they're talking about.
"
Sometimes, reviewers simply do not "Get it". Whether it is ignorance or just simply something beyond their grasp, either intellectually, spritually or even plain ol' musically; it is beyond them. This is almost certainly the case here.
Perhaps the most relevant word to use when commenting on this review is "Preconception". This would account for the apparant ignorance and dismissal running through the review. If one simply uses archaic pointers to judge, then isn't it inevitable that the criticism itself becomes archaic?
Just a thought.
Fail
One of the best albums of recent years...
Fail is really a good
Fail is really a good summary of this review.
Nice research
"Smith was documented as saying that he listens to more Jethro Tull than Radiohead, after all. More power to him."
Documented, eh? As in you lifted that from Wikipedia? What a crock of shit.
I think this is a touch
I think this is a touch unfair. Midlake just released an album that suggests a Jethro Tull influence. If I stumbled upon such a quote in this context I'd consider using it, regardless of whether it came from Wikipedia, an AV Club interview, or an obscure foreign language fanzine. The point is it's legitimate and relevant to the record under consideration. It has also been quoted or referenced in a number of other articles on the band, so I think the word documented is used appropriately too.
To comment #1:
There are no grounds whatsoever to suggest Andy has listened to this album "(not even) once". No one on this site would dismiss a high profile album without having listened to it thoroughly. I know Andy gave Midlake's latest plenty of time to make an impact (his track record, integrity, and his last.fm stats...) and although you clearly disagree strongly, I thought the way you implied that he'd tossed this review off without giving it a shot was a little unfair.
Nope
It's a touch unfair to take something Smith said years ago that has survived because of Wikipedia and apply it to his current work, then pretend like he wrote it in a thesis paper or something, but if we're going that road, he also said this:
"I want to sound more like Jethro Tull, but I just can't. That's a big struggle."
Accurate, because The Courage of Others doesn't sound like Jethro Tull, no more than "Maggie May" and "Losing My Religion" sound the same because they both utilize the mandolin.
Yes, I read the second part
Yes, I read the second part of that passage too - I should have seen that one coming back at me!
Rightly or wrongly I believe there's slightly more to the recurring Jethro Tull comparisons than the presence of a flute - there's a definite British 70s folk/prog thing going on here, which the band has acknowledged much more recently. As far as I can tell Smith hasn't mentioned JT specifically in any recent interviews... I think he's moved on to Pentagle now.
Bullseye
No, this review hits the mark unfortunately. I really liked Van Occupanther and have been struggling for the past few days to find someting of merit in this one but I'm not coming up with much. Every song, with a couple exceptions, just sounds like one long bridge, a cobble stoned bridge to nowhere. Acts Of Man and Core Of Nature are small flickers of hope but the rest is just boring as all hell. It's tough to admit that because the band definitely has promise and I'd like to say that they've finally lived up to their potential after 3 years of but they've regrettably just taken a big step back. They need to get back on their steeds and try again.
No.
J, is it necessary for you to cut and paste almost exactly the same thing you posted in the Onion forum? Say something else. This review is completely off the mark.
Spot on review
Massive disappointment of an album. Apart from 'Fortune', it sounds like they've just stretched one song over the course of an entire album and it's absolute torture to get through as a result. At least The Trials Of Van Occupanther is go good that it'll get me through another 3 years until the next album is released, and hopefully that one will be better.
Yeah, okay
I still feel like many of the criticisms leveled against this album are from not listening to this album properly. It's quite obvious, actually. Otherwise, none of these ridiculous statements about the album "stretching out like one long song" would be uttered out of your mouths. THIS ALBUM IS NOT TRYING TO BE THE TRIALS OF VAN OCCUPANTHER PT. II. Why don't people seem to understand this??
Midlake’s previous
Midlake’s previous full-lengths essentially comprised outstanding singles supported by excellent, if slightly less memorable, album tracks. Midlake could have easily been considered a singles band, but they’ve decidedly taken a more mature approach with The Courage of Others. Just because it’s unrelenting in its somber mood, does not mean it’s monotonous. The culminated effect is more impacting than its constituent parts because it’s meant to be digested as a whole. Its hermetic tone encapsulates Tim Smith’s increasing disillusionment with the world and his desire to reconcile the ever-dissolving relationship between humanity and nature. It expresses discomfiture with the effects of modern conveniences. Close inspection of the lyrics is vital to The Courage of Others’ understanding. Not a single hint of this album ever feels like an afterthought. Every element of this masterwork feels purposeful, measured and beautifully judged while maintaing an organic magnetism that only seasoned musicians can muster. The production is meticulously rendered, and the playing is intuitive, synchronized and impeccably executed. Given this album’s turbulent gestation with initial sessions being scrapped, it’s clear that the finished product perfectly distills the band’s intent.
For the record, that Pitchfork review is one of the most needlessly inflammatory and self-indulgent reviews I’ve ever come across with any given source. People act like Pitchfork is the Supreme Court of the music journalism world-the ones with the end-all, be-all say-so. Pitchfork has its thousands of mindless minions that will obey their every command and heed to their every word. They are nowhere near the best source for music reviews. Unless you just love pompously inflated, contradictory, masturbatory, self-important horseshit that focuses more on the writer’s linguistic capabilities rather than the musical content at hand.
Regardless, I still feel like the naysayers of the album are SORELY missing the point. Much of their dissatisfaction stems from a clear lack of patience and active listening. The lack of surface variation between the tracks is aesthetically chosen, and not resulting from monotony or a band void of inspiration. The Courage of Others is an exercise of restraint. I feel those who are still haven’t gotten into this album should observe with high-end headphones. In this context, it is easier to hear how assiduously constructed each of these songs is. The leaf-strewn density of the arrangements will unveil intensely melodic, richly detailed songs accentuated with superbly understated craft. This album sidesteps explorations in catchy songwriting and instead opts for textured, moody passages of bruised ruminations and stately, worldly afflictions. Casual approaches WILL not and DO not work for this album.
I did not expect The Courage of Others to be so dichotomizing. In the UK, this album has been, perhaps understandably, receiving rhapsodic praise. People should have let the album settle before determining its merit as it requires full, undistracted commitment from the listener for its intricately woven layers to unspool. Otherwise, it is quite easy to be underwhelmed, as many have prematurely claimed. As a result, it has been disappointingly maligned in some circles. I am confident between The Trials of Van Occupanther and this latest endeavor, the latter is the much deeper and ultimately more satisfying effort. I have never heard an album with a more unruffled balance of modernity and timelessness. It’s a startling, magical alchemy.
A...
...fuckin'-men.
Post new comment