Tracklist
Lifeblood-01-1985
Lifeblood-02-The Love of Richard Nixon
Lifeblood-03-Empty Souls
Lifeblood-04-A Song for Departure
Lifeblood-05-I Live to Fall Asleep
Lifeblood-06-To Repel Ghosts
Lifeblood-07-Emily
Lifeblood-08-Glasnost
Lifeblood-09-AlwaysNever
Lifeblood-10-Solitude Sometimes Is
Lifeblood-11-Fragments
Lifeblood-12-Cardiff Afterlife
Review
by Lucy O'Doherty
20 November 2002
When the Manics made their brash, sloganeering entrance onto the music scene at the beginning of the 90s, Richey Edwards declared in a DIY press release: "We are as far away from anything in the 80s as possible."
It would have been unthinkable then, that nearly 15 years later the band would be looking back on that decade with the wistful nostalgia of Lifeblood. This record is soaked in it: the lyrics, production, instrumentation and sheer gloss all take you back, with the band admitting references to The Cure, New Order and even early U2.
This isn't trendy 80s retro though, James Dean Bradfield's vocals cry out with heartfelt longing for the past. On the opening track "1985" James repeats the mantra "No going back" and despite the song breaking into bizarrely uplifting peals of sound, I'm left with a feeling of real loss.
This sense of loss is felt again on "Song for Departure" and "Live To Fall Asleep", two of the highlights of the album. The former sees the Manics branch into enchanting harmonies, reminiscent of the The Mamas and the Papas, while the latter is delicate and elegant.
Lyrically this album is much more restrained and subtle than on This Is My Truth Tell Me Yours and Know Your Enemy. They manage to fit in all the obligatory political and cultural comment, without sounding forced, although on "Emily" and the irritating first single "The Love of Richard Nixon" they are found guilty of falling into that trap.
Lifeblood may be imbued with a powerful melancholia, but it's not perfect. In recent years The Manic Street Preachers seem incapable of making an album that's not slightly disappointing. It's hard not to expect more from the band that made the magnificent Holy Bible.
The 1994 album is being re-released for its tenth anniversary this December, and a side by side comparison with Lifeblood won't do the new album any favours. The Manics have been trying to move on from their dark roots for some time now. They have finally found a convincing voice, even if it is a million miles from where they started.
Review from : http://www.bbc.co.uk/music/release/vqgb/
Manic Street Preachers:2004 - Lifeblood
Wednesday
เขียนโดย No Download mp3 here! ที่ 10:30 PM
ป้ายกำกับ: Alternative, Manic Street Preachers, Rock
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
10 ความคิดเห็น:
If I was to release tracks of Lifeblood it would have been (In preference order)1. I Live to Fall Asleep2. Glasnost3. Empty Souls4. Solitude Sometimes Is5. 19856. A Song for Departure7. Love Of Richard Nixon
To those who unfairly complain that they have never since reached the 'heady heights' of the first three albums - Richey is not there anymore, they are older, more mellow maybe (perhaps happier ???) of course they are going to sound different, live with it, it's called moving on, so should you - they still make damn fine music and Lifeblood is no exception - great stuff from a (still) great band.
With the Richey James era firmly behind them, the Manics have mostly grown out of their (decidedly affected) angsty political posturing. James Dean Bradley's voice has matured ever so nicely and the instrumentation has gained a lushness that lifts tracks like "1985", "I Live To Fall Asleep", "To Repel Ghosts" and "Emily" right up there among their post-Holy Bible highlights. It's far from an uninterrupted parade of masterpieces though; the Manics do tend to fall prey to their own retro sentimentalism and wind up with annoyances (The Love Of Richard Nixon) and soporifics (Solitude Sometimes Is). Rates 3.5 out of 5.
A wonderful album. A major proof of this is that the album takes more than a couple of listens to sink in. The best way to listen to this is with no distractions and even with your eyes shut and absorb the musical soundscapes. Not as good as The Holy Bible but equal to Generation Terrorists and Everything Must Go. 9/10
This is an amazing album. At first listen you think "No! What have they done" but after another couple of listens you realise that the songs here are, dare I say it, quite beautiful. Slots in quite nicely as the Manics joint-third best album with only The Holy Bible and Everything Must Go better, and on a par with Generation Terrorists. A great album from a band who seem to be able to do any type of music and do it better than anyone else.
Lifeblood - Fantastic manics album! The only doubt is "The Love of Richard Nixon" as many have said before. My favourite tracks are "Empty Souls" and "A Song For Departure" Its' not going to be like the "Holy Bible" we're not in the 90's anymore
Let's face it, all bands change after time - otherwise they start sounding repetitive (think the Bluetones.) I think this album was a change for good - it is very melodic and emotional. And who knows, maybe it's a temporary direction? At least they still have more intellect than other rock bands.
what is Bloodwork? Lifeblood is a fantastic album. new direction but still fantastic.
Lifeblood is an album that is uncharacteristic of the work of the Manic Street Preachers. As an album its songs are relatively uplifting and bouyant. There is the occasional trace of social poeticism, but it is limited. One of the best tracks of the album is; "Empty Souls" which resembles a Coldplay-esque aura of moving lyrics accompanied by haunting piano notes. It is safe to say that this album for die hard Manics fans will not necessarily be well-received, but for those that aren't then this is perhaps the easiest to get involved with. Worth a listen either way.
I think the Manics can look and back and say least we tried something different on every album. I went to see them play live and the songs off the new album were fantastic live as they are on cd. Theres some beautiful tracks the highlight being 1985. Nice on guys
Post a Comment