Midlake – The Courage of Others (Bella Union)
3/5
By: Tim Dellow
The Trials of Van Occupanther, the stunning second album from Midlake released way back in 2006, moved the band from their roots as Grandaddy patrons into a distillation of great Americana from Fleetwood Mac through to Mercury Rev which set a blueprint for the likes of Fleet Foxes (on the same fantastic label Bella Union) and Bon Iver to enhance the appeal of an already commercial style to remind CSNY fans that the sadness, the sense of lack, inherent in white America was still alive and well.
Returning with their new album The Courage of Others, Midlake have made much noise about following their artistic muse rather than riding the zeitgeist and created an album devoid of character based songs, influenced more by the classic British Folk of Steeleye Span and The Incredible String Band than Fleetwood Mac et al, a decision that in theory posits them as canny social observers spotting a natural wave in that field, represented in the UK at least, by the likes of Laura Marling and Johnny Flynn.
However, psych-folk cover art excepted, this would appear to be more talk than action – it still sounds like the Midlake of their last record with ‘Chain’-esque guitars climaxing in Neil Young analogue recordings; unmistakably American even to the degree that “Bring Down” mirrors the guitar patterns of Hotel California!
The switch to first person over character stories is hugely profound; if one were to remove the words “I”, “Me” and “My” the album would be instrumental. This self obsession blind sights the front man Tim Smith’s ability to connect wholly with the music leading, especially on the title track, to him seeming to give up on completing the concept of a song, surrendering to a band which is seeking a musical transcendence whilst he wallows in a self-flaggeration on behalf of modern America.
This largely takes the form of wishing for a more simplistic time past, imagining himself as a simple man in a new and unspoiled America; forcing himself into a fantasy as fruitless as the characters in Shyamalan’s The Village.
‘Core of Nature’ takes this to its logical extreme with him lyrically forcing this concept of oneness with the land into a musical pattern to which it does not fit – as awkward as mankind’s incapability to bind with nature.
However, there is a melancholic beauty that pervades the entire album – and instrumental passages in particular the ‘Moonchild’ referencing flute in The Courage of Others are bolstered by a vocal sadness from Tim and, on ‘Bring Down’, Stephanie Dosen which, if succumbed to, brings a soft beauty over repeated listens.
‘Acts of Men’ and ‘Winter Dies’, may at first seem to lack the tunes to really be loved but, like much of this album, the earworms will reveal themselves over repeated listens – an old fashioned album that requires a good helping of listener patience and therefore seems to be as out of time in this hyper-modern landscape as the concepts that inspired it.
Artists in this article: Midlake
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