Belle & Sebastian
http://www.belleandsebastian.com
styles: twee-pop, kitsch-pop, not-as-sad bastard music
others: Donovan, Camera Obscura, The Free Design, '60s musicals
The
Life Pursuit
Matador, 2006
rating: 3.5/5
reviewer: paul haney
With a few exceptions, it's inevitable that most bands are going to disappoint
in one way or another once their career has progressed to a certain point.
Sometimes key members leave, sometimes the same spark that once was becomes
numb, or maybe the trajectory of sound has just reached a less-than-satisfactory
place for their core constituent of hardcore fans. If any band has had such
complaints thrown at them seemingly since the beginning, it's been Belle &
Sebastian. The number of times the ubiquitous Scottish twee-poppers have become
"has-beens" is a burden that no band should be forced to carry, especially that
early in their career. Following their big breakthrough If You're Feeling
Sinister, they "lost it" on its fanatically anticipated follow-up The Boy
With The Arab Strap. And after everyone began to see the charms on record
number three, they then "lost it" on the overly-democratic, but no-less
delightful Fold Your Hands Child, You Walk Like Peasant. And let's not
forget that they "lost it" on the Rough Trade-backed Dear Catastrophe
Waitress. It seems with each record, the collective bear the haphazard
scrutiny of the entire indie-pop community, only to have such grumbling drift
into nothingness once something catches on.
To be perfectly honest though, Belle & Sebastian aren't as impressive and
singular as they once were. Gone are principal songwriter Stuart Murdoch's once
beautifully morose and witty musings, which felt like a dream-world meeting
point between Nick Drake's Bryter Layter and the dry, caustic humor of
Morrissey. The group had so much more depth than the "twee" label they were
tagged with from the start indicated; even if musically the songs approached the
whimsy of The Free Design, the lyrics and wordplay had all the imagery and
genius of the writers and cult figures Murdoch so often felt vocally indebted
to. And after losing a few members following the tumultuous Fold Your Hands
Child period (most notably Isobel Campbell), it's easy to see how Belle &
Sebastian became a different band, one that can be too kitschy and clever for
its own good, but that still possesses enough charm and passion for those
willing to look. Taking the new Belle & Sebastian as an independent entity, one
that is unlikely to leave anytime soon, it's much easier to withstand their
current output without feeling overwhelmingly let-down.
That said, The Life Pursuit, for all of its enjoyable moments, is the
weakest link in their catalog thus far. Their last album, Dear Catastrophe
Waitress, saw the band's precious folk nuances make way for a more expansive
and bombastic palette of meta-kitsch. Much in the way Scott Walker subverted the
easy listening crowd by singing about prostitutes and cross-dressers, Murdoch
and his remaining pals have brought a rebellious streak to the cheesy pop it so
lovingly aped. If the discomforting hints of Hair, variety shows, and
other such beacons of oft-dubious taste are too much for some, Belle & Sebastian
thankfully avoid the irony trap for the most part by embracing the brassy
attitude of their new aura. On The Life Pursuit, things are pretty much
kept the same as on Dear Catastrophe Waitress, only with a little more
obvious jumping from sub-genre to sub-genre, making for a delirious,
frustrating, and usually fun listen.
On their return to Matador, Murdoch (who takes almost total control here,
perhaps too late for some) and company keep things at a Godspell-level of
effervescence, and the ventures into such seemingly random areas as shiny happy
showtunes ("Song For Sunshine") and disposable glam-rock ("The Blues Are Still
Blue") seem to exist solely to convince their audience that they're a collective
impossible to peg down. Still, it's hard to take songs like "Song For Sunshine"
and "Sukie In The Graveyard" as little more than escapist mistakes that may have
made for an easily-ignored b-side, but disrupt the party here like the
overly-eager theater kid trying desperately to impress the other guests. "The
Blues Are Still Blue," with its T. Rex-ish guitar hook, is in fact the only
genre experiment that proves surprisingly successful, as Murdoch and company
aptly emulate the superfluous joy that the glam movement held in its prime.
Although it seems a bit closed-minded to say it, Belle & Sebastian are at best
here when they play it safe. Openers "Act Of The Apostle, Pt. 1" and "Another
Sunny Day" are proof enough that a potentially gratingly jolly Belle & Sebastian
can still produce moments of soothing pop brilliance (especially true with the
latter), while "Funny Little Frog" and "For The Price Of A Cup Of Tea" are two
of the band's best mimicking of innocuous '70s radio pop to date, proving that
although it's been done too much for comfort in the indie-pop world, only these
Scots seem able to get it right.
Still, it's hard to see The Life Pursuit as little more than a guarded
follow-up to Dear Catastrophe Waitress, and its predecessor at least had
a few brilliant singles ("Step Into My Office, Baby" and "I'm A Cuckoo") that
made this new version of Belle & Sebastian worth defending. This album is
acceptable enough for those who've stuck with them up until this point, and
although it's relishable in many spots, there's still a sense that much of this
new chapter had been done too much before for anyone else to start carrying the
reins. Those hoping for a return to days past, back when the collective became a
Generation-Y version of The Smiths, will inevitably be disappointed, but those
expecting such déjà vu from 1996 should probably know better. In the end, one
feels torn between how to approach Belle & Sebastian at this point in their
career. They certainly have a grasp on what they're creating, but it hurts a
little bit to think that the mysterious band-that-could from ten years back
cares less for innovation than simply having a fleeting good time.
1. Act Of The Apostle, Part I
2. Another Sunny Day
3. White Collar Boy
4. The Blues Are Still Blue
5. Dress Up In You
6. Sukie In The Graveyard
7. We Are The Sleepyheads
8. Song For Sunshine
9. Funny Little Frog
10. To Be Myself Completely
11. Act Of The Apostle, Part II
12. For The Price Of A Cup Of A Tea
13. Mornington Crescent
Dear
Catastrophe Waitress
Rough Trade/Jeepster, 2003
rating: 3.5/5
reviewer: husky
Belle & Sebastian have been making music since 1996 when they recorded
Tigermilk. Success of that album was enormous.
Their follow-up was called If You’re Feeling Sinister,
which was hailed as one of the most original additions to the musical
landscape in years. After Sinister,
opinions about its follow-ups, The Boy With the
Arab Strap and Fold Your
Hands Child, You Walk Like a Peasant,
were a bit varied. Some people felt
these records were parodies on B&S’s own songs, others thought of them as an
even better effort than Sinister. Last year’s Storytelling (a
soundtrack for Todd Solondz’s movie) was generally seen as the most awful thing
the band had done in its history.
And now we have Dear Catastrophe Waitress, the first "real"
B&S record in three years.
It seems that B&S found the "spirit"
again; Waitress sounds as if the band finally
refound the joy of playing music. In songs like
"Piazza, New York Catcher" and
"You Don’t Send Me," B&S
sound like a fresh young band, ready to unleash their songs to an unknowing
world. Also, a song like "Lord Anthony"
has that same ‘unspoiled’ feeling that, for example,
Tigermilk’s "We Rule The School"
had. "Lord Anthony" even
hints at some unexplored terrain for the band, if you pay attention to the
classical orchestrated introduction of the song.
Though not their strongest album, Dear Catastrophe Waitress is a
fine record indeed.
1. Step Into My Office, Baby
2. Dear Catastrophe Waitress
3. If She Wants Me
4. Piazza, New York Catcher
5. Asleep On A Sunbeam
6. I'm A Cuckoo
7. You Don't Send Me
8. Wrapped Up In Books
9. Lord Anthony
10. If You Find Yourself Caught In Love
11. Roy Walker
12. Stay Loose
