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No Rest For The Wicked - Lykke Li 

Album review: Young Animal Hearts - Spring Offensive

9/10 

The long-awaited debut album from Oxford's Spring Offensive will be released tomorrow (10th March) and although it's been a long time coming, it's certainly worth the wait. Having been recommended by fellow Oxford musicians Stornoway in an interview with NotAnotherRainySunday in 2011, Spring Offensive are only just releasing their first full-length record, demonstrating the meticulous preparation that has gone into making it. 

The album opens with the darkly beautiful 'Not Drowning But Waving', with the lyrics focusing on a man's guilt of letting someone drown. Frontman, Lucas Whitworth, sings "a freezing mist comes rolling in. I will be blamed for this one", the stark lyrics perfectly fitting with the richness of haunting four-part harmonies. A clever take on Stevie Smith's poem 'Not Waving But Drowning', Spring Offensive are a poetic bunch - the band name is taken from the Wilfred Owen poem of the same name. Their songs follow great narratives, and refreshingly are not always about love. 'Hengelo' is a case in point, written about 'Forest Boy', a mysterious young man who appeared in Berlin alone, claiming to have lived in the forest for five years.  

'Bodylifting' has a distinctive Spring Offensive feel to it, with sumptuous vocal harmonies mixed with grungy guitars. The song is a popular favourite on the album, gaining itself airtime on Radio 1 last week. The beauty of Spring Offensive's music is that songs like the punchy 'Bodylifting' can appear on the same album as songs with sweeter melodies like 'Carrier', showcasing the band's range in styles. Despite the gentler sounds of 'Carrier', the lyrics still retain a seductive melancholia that arches over the majority of the band's music, with Whitworth singing, "it works like a sick bug, I'm not feeling myself, it makes me curl up, it makes me wish I was dead". 

It's hard to fit Spring Offensive into an exact genre, but perhaps this is a blessing for the band. Their music is a unique mix of guitar rock and driving drum beats, without losing the elegance of simple and catchy melodies and vocal harmonies. With the album funded completely through crowd-sourcing, it's clear that the band's fanbase is rapidly growing, and it's no surprise why. Young Animal Hearts is a triumph with each song proving equally as thought-provoking as the previous. Spring Offensive not only make clever music, but music that can survive listen after listen without ever growing old. Be prepared to have to this album stuck on repeat. 

Head to Oxford's Truck Store at 6pm tomorrow where Spring Offensive will be playing to celebrate the release of Young Animal Hearts. 

Read NotAnotherRainySunday's interview with Spring Offensive back in 2012. 

springoffensive.co.uk

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I Need My Girl - The National 

Album review: Dialects - Snowmine

9/10 

Brooklyn five-piece, Snowmine, have triumphed with the release of their new album, 'Dialects'. Recorded in a church, the tracks on the album have a fresh and expansive sound that seems very organic - the band pride themselves on the lack of borrowed samples; everything has been written and recorded by them, and it has paid off. 

Across the album, the vocals are reminiscent of Vampire Weekend, but the comparisons end there, for the song are unique in their arrangements of orchestral instruments. With strings and clarinets, the sound is rich and vibrant - opening track, 'To Hold An Ocean' is added to by the sound effects of a gently lapping ocean. Each song on the album seamlessly flows into the next, meaning a unified sound spans the record. 

'Columbus' is perhaps the most exciting song on the album. The melodic vocals are wonderfully contrasted with a thumping drumbeat and a jangling bassline. It's certainly a colourful track, with a lot going on. However, the various strands all fit neatly together, proving that the band are accomplished musicians. This is even more evident on 'Safety in a Open Mind', a purely instrumental track that is the perfect mix of electronic beats layered with flutes.

The album is perfectly produced, with recurring instruments providing overarching musical themes across the whole record. However, this isn't to say that the tracks are repetitive. Each individual track is a masterpiece, meaning 'Dialects' is safely one of the best albums of 2014 so far.

www.snowmine.com

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Love Is To Die - Warpaint 

Live video: Whispered Half Asleep - Toliesel

Recorded at Studio Focus, a wonderful live video for Toliesel's 'Whispered Half Asleep' has surfaced on the internet, which showcases the band's extraordinary sound. In a live setting, the song is a powerful and exhilarating listen, with rich layers of guitars and drums. A dreamy sounding introduction is a nice addition to the recorded version taken from the band's Contours EP, released last September and reviewed on NotAnotherRainySunday here. 

toliesel.com

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Envy - Breton 

Single review: Hengelo - Spring Offensive

10/10 

Whilst fans eagerly await the release of Spring Offensive's debut album, Young Animal Hearts, the band have released Hengelo, a mesmerising song that manages to be both energetic and reflective - Spring Offensive's trademark. The jangling bass-line provides a fast pace to the song, but the intensity of the music is wonderfully contrasted with melancholic lyrics. 

Inspired by the story of Hengelo's "Forest Boy", lead-singer, Lucas Whitworth, sings of the feeling of being lost. 'I'm at the gates, I wait in hope, frozen by the Eastern cold. I was in Berlin, I was on my own.' The lyrics are simple, and yet filled with emotion - when Whitworth sings, as much is conveyed in his voice as in the lyrics. 

The song as a whole is beautifully thought-provoking, and hints at the treats to come on their album. If Hengelo is anything to go by, Young Animal Hearts should show Spring Offensive to be worthy of more attention than they currently receive. 

Spring Offensive will play at the Hoxton Square Bar & Kitchen on 24th April. For more information visit http://springoffensive.co.uk/ 

Read NotAnotherRainySunday's interview with Spring Offensive here. 

I've Been Listening To...

Mesmerise - Temples

Top 10 albums of 2013

10. Cloud Control - Dream Cave

Following on from the success of their 2011 record, Bliss Release, Cloud Control have returned with another glorious pop album. Released in September, the album was the perfect soundtrack to late summer, with hazy guitars and synths. Although the sound is much the same as their first album, it's a formula that works - vibrant but laid-back music that is distinctly 'Cloud Control'.

9. Foals - Holy Fire

 With a much heavier and richer guitar sound than many of the albums on the list, Holy Fire is easily one of the most gritty albums of the year, making for an exciting sound - a progression from their earlier albums with catchier melodies, whilst still retaining a rawness that has become their trademark.

8. Dutch Uncles - Out Of Touch in The Wild

 The dancing in the music video for Flexxin should give a clue to the pulsing rhythms that drive the songs on the album. Hailing from Manchester, the band has branched out from the guitar rock with which the city has become so associated, instead creating a niche for themselves - violins intertwine with xylophones in unusual time signatures.

7. John Grant - Pale Green Ghosts

 Recorded in Reykjavik with Icelandic electronic musician, Birgir Þórarinsson, John Grant's second  album has a melancholic vibe to it. Grant's voice is beautifully melodic, seeming to sincerely believes every word he sings. With wonderful string sections the album sounds hugely atmospheric - one can hear the influence the Icelandic landscape has had on him, particularly on Glacier.

  

6. Sweet Baboo - Ships

 The fourth album from Sweet Baboo (AKA Stephen Black), Ships is a charming record with simple,  catchy melodies. With jangling guitars and trumpets, it's a triumphant sounding album that has been a firm favourite throughout the summer months. Despite the morbid title of If I Died..., it's a wonderfully quirky tune with a sense of fun that is carried across the whole album.

 

5. Owiny Sigoma Band - Power Punch

 A joint collaboration between musicians from London and Nairobi, Power Punch has a sound that encompasses the best of British pop and rhythmic Kenyan beats. The brainchild of musicians in electronic hip-hop collective, Elmore Judd, it's clear that electronic music has very much remained an influence in the album. The fusion of the two cultures brings refreshing sounds to the album, and sets the group out to be one to watch in 2014. 

 

4. Villagers - {Awayland}

Villagers’ second album, {Awayland}, is a clear progression from their debut. Although some critics disliked the fact they’ve departed from their acoustic roots, there’s definitely a grittier edge to the album which makes them seem wiser – perhaps the result of months on the road, touring. Stand-out track, Nothing Arrived, sounds fresh amongst the more electronic tracks on the album, with bluesy piano chords wonderfully contrasting with the crisp clarity of lead singer Conor O’Brien’s voice.

3. The Epstein - Murmurations

Alongside the line-up changing, The Epstein's original country vibe has also greatly evolved over the past few years, and in Murmurations, has found a new sense of sophistication. The tracks are refined whilst still retaining a slight rock'n'roll edge, showing that the band have truly found a niche for their music.

2. Stornoway - Tales From Terra Firma

 Sonically, Tales From Terra Firma is far removed from Beachomber's Windowsill, with a more poppish sound, but, much like their first, the album is full of maritime imagery – ironic for a band from Oxford, one of the furthest points from the sea in Britain. Recorded in old churches and a garage, Tales From Terra Firma is wonderfully rustic, with little quirks throughout that showcase the band’s extraordinary musical talent – a spoon solo features in Knock Me On The Head.

 

1. Everything Everything - Arc

 The explosive second album from Everything Everything is one of the most vibrant to hit the Mancunian music scene in a long time. With its pulsing drum beats and jangling basslines, the album is an exhilarating listen, and the almost chant like quality to the vocals provides a unique sound which makes Everything Everything one of the most exciting bands of the year.