December 1998 I am about to turn twenty-eight, divorced and renting a room paying a fortune in maintenance but I’ve got myself in this mess, so I just must get on with it.
There is not a lot of money about the odd CD is bought but I hardly ever go to concerts.
Then I am offered a free ticket to see James, things are looking up. They are on a bit of a career high with Whiplash being a recent top ten album and their Greatest Hits hitting number one. I always liked them, had loved several of their albums. They were magnificent, played the hits and recent songs to a spectacular standard and Booth was a top front man. They would go on to bigger things, wrong as by 2002 they had gone.
In 2007 they returned, and La Petite Mort was their fourth album since their reunion. What we have here are ten tracks of a band confident in their ability and their place.
Walk Like You is an outstanding start with just Booth and piano before the band come in. Many of the lyrics came from the recent death of Booth’s mother and his best friend but this is an uplifting record none more so than on this opener that does not overstay its welcome even at over seven minutes.
.
Curse Curse we have a couple having sex, Messi scoring and tequila over quite simply a banging tune with Booth belting out “I’m not good enough.” How wrong he is.
Moving On the chorus hooks you in and a has drum beat from David Baynton-Power that is strong and powerful and wait to you get to the bass from Jim Glennie on Gone Baby Gone. Frozen Britain is guitar led and Booth almost shouts out the title of the album La Petite Mort and Interrogation slows us all down, masterfully done.
Following this Bitter Virtue and All in My Mind are slower and more reflective and Mark Hunter provides a sublime piano treat throughout the latter and then does is again on Quicken the Dead.
All I’m Saying closes this excellent record which is one of those rare records that has no filler.
They have recently gone to number one with Yummy, yet I cannot help but feel they are under appreciated. If you know the hits but have never listened to one of their records, then this is a wonderful place to start.
9/10
GIVE IT A STREAM: Curse Curse
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