Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *
When the vibe is good then it rocks the house down and your neighbours, normally two feet from the wall and banging with ever sinew and muscle flexing and a small amount of foam dribbling down their unhappy chin, suddenly come round and ask you to turn it up. Then the music fan delights in the mayhem they have caused, and the small victory of the right music played at the right time makes the heart beat a little faster.
The Wombats might not be thought of the arbitration kings of the 21st Century but with their new album Glitterbug, they have surely joined the ranks where Kofi Anan might step down from any future role he might take. Wonderfully loud, positive, crackling with a beat that catches the eardrums snoozing and wakes them up as if they had been belted round the head by the bell of Big Ben in a sarcastic mood. Without adding another layer of clout to the production, there isn’t much more you can add to this terrifically sounding album without going overboard.
It is though the lot of many a band that they can go from cool to distrustful in some eyes, normally the preserve of the traditional media who have their own agenda when it comes to such things. The darling of the underground can become cannon fodder in a matter of a single album and for whatever reason; the underground becomes an unsafe territory for them to remain in. In that regards, any band that strikes out as being comfortable, being easy to understand and follow with pleasure because they are happy in their own skin, deserves the respect that finding that inner peace has had as an effect on their career or even just one album; inner peace doesn’t always last forever.
Glitterbug is warmth hiding a deep disturbing shadow, it is the light being so bright that any hint of darkness only causes the recess and off centre illumination to be taken as more disturbing, to be wary of. Tracks such Emoticons, Greek Tragedy, This is Not A Party, Your Body Is A Weapon and the lavish English Summer not only put a smile on the face as they are being listened to, but they allude to the shadow cast. Even in the most exuberant of songs, the shadow is cast deep and wide and for that makes life’s circle more complete and heartbreaking.
Continuing the work laid down in the band’s two previous albums, Glitterbug is overflowing with wealth, a great set of songs in which the mind understands that even in the brightest day, darkness must show itself.
Ian D. Hall