Preface: I am so, so sorry for what you’re about to read, I think my head kinda exploded while I was writing it. If you’re interested in my thoughts on the album though, it probably is worth the effort, so jump on the rollercoaster that this post has become and just humour me when it occasionally catapults off the rails. It’s been unexpectedly difficult to write for reasons that will hopefully become clear further down.
^v^
^v^
So. I know it has only been out for a few days, but I’ve pretty much had the album on repeat (except for a few hours each morning when I’ve been trying to learn McFly’s back catalogue for Sunday) so I feel I’m already well equipped to update my initial thoughts (which can be found here if you’re so inclined to read them) on the awesomeness that is The Call Of ’56, the debut album from The Last Carnival.
Disclaimer: Before I get down to it, I feel that the following note (rambling & bracket filled, as usual – to the point that I actually felt the need to highlight the important bits for clarity *sigh*) is necessary: I debated with myself for some time over whether or not to tone down the fangirling in this post (and in all future posts), given that I wrote it with the intention of sharing it on twitter and also intend to continue publicising the blog with my real face attached (not literally – that would be quite horrendous) from now on. Ultimately, however, I decided that I wasn’t willing to abandon my artistic integrity as a writer (stop laughing, I’m serious!). This blog is for me more than for anyone else and it’s as much about the freedom to fangirl at will (note, lower case ‘w’. I am not currently fangirling over any Williams. Well, between Robbie, Ads & Russ, that’s a blatant lie, but I’m not fangirling over anyone called William at present. I’m sure one will turn up sooner or later. A Will Swenson revival, perhaps?) as it is about reviewing shows and whatnot, so I refuse to allow my fear of what the subject of said fangirling might think to influence what I do and don’t write. In other words; Justin (& anyone else I fangirl over regularly – Ash, Dyl (or for a bit of old school, Steel) etc.), on the off chance you actually see this or any past/future posts in which you might be mentioned, I’m sorry! Just please don’t take any of it too seriously. As anyone who knows me well can tell you, I am, once in a while, prone to a bit of fangirling and/or muppet-y-ness, but I really don’t mean anything by it. The blog is just an outlet for my personal brand of crazy & it’s intended purely as a bit of harmless fun (and to stop me forgetting my entire life in a haze of touring, theatre and stage door encounters). So read, enjoy, laugh (with me or at me, your choice!), but whatever you do, take everything I write (well almost everything; Once was still one of the most phenomenal things I’ve ever seen & I sincerely meant every word of that review) with a healthy (or unhealthy, I suppose) pinch of salt :).
Now, on with the important stuff (and lots more brackets (I really should stop that. I didn’t realise how bad I was getting until I started redrafting. I sometimes wonder if anyone manages to follow my various trains of thought at all from in amongst the labyrinth of nested parentheses (I’m clearly a programmer at heart)! Anyway, still with me? No? Oh well, you’ll catch up eventually (and yes all the nesting in this was entirely necessary (though I might need an IDE to check I’ve actually used the right number… I wonder if wordpress has syntax highlighting… (I’m such a geek :P))))):
SO (can you tell I’m nervous? *fidgets* I feel very exposed right now *adds a few more unnecessary brackets* please be gentle with me)!
First off, the album is definitely a grower. I loved it on first listen, of course, but now I LOVE it. I mean, I’m sure that’s not much of a shock, but I thought it was worth noting anyway ;).
The Call of ’56 – Not got all that much more to say on this since it was already well known to me when the album came out and I have in fact discussed it previously in a blog which is still lost somewhere in the backlog of unpublished nattering (I believe it features at the start of my Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2013: Day 1 post, which was written the day after the video was released). So, on to the next one…
Promise Song – When I first got the album, this actually tended to get missed a bit as I keep starting from No Hero (and I’m still in the ‘play it in order’ phase of learning it), but then the record isn’t that long and my commute is, so it usually came round eventually, plus having it on all day in the office helped a bit! So, somehow, despite odds initially stacked against it, this is the one that really seems to get itself stuck in my head. It appears to have been subtly growing on me since the first listen and I’ve actually become rather fond of it, to the point that I often start the album from here now. I really love the harmonies too. I’ve also worked out what it reminds me of; Grease. Or possibly Grease 2. I think it just pulls up mental images of grand finales full of T-Birds & Pink Ladies, arms wrapped around each other & singing about togetherness. Note: This is a good thing. I love Grease. And Grease 2 (yes, you read that right, it’s a kick-ass film. I mean Cool Rider? C’mon, it rocks!).
No Hero – I have no idea why I thought this sounded different to my expectations when I first heard it. It now sounds exactly how I’d have thought I’d have expected it to sound (that does make sense, I promise) and it’s just as beautiful as I needed it to be when I first heard it performed live. I know I’ve raved about this song from the first, but it really is gorgeous. I remember seeing the band for the first time [I might actually link to the post here if I ever actually get it published…] and they caught my attention from the word go, but it was this song that made me want to go home and check them out properly, even before I’d met and fallen in love with them as people. Though I will say that I’ve now watched my video of it from the Garage so many times that I can’t help picturing it whenever I hear the song. Given that I pretty much had the camera trained on Justin for the entirety of the track, it does tend to throw up a few rather pleasant mental images whenever I hear it… (totally not my fault, by the way. He was stood right in front of me, Kieran was lost somewhere in the fog of the dry ice, Ads was hidden behind Mike and I couldn’t fit Mike AND Justin into one shot anyway… (Plus, to be fair, Russ is in pretty much the whole video too, he’s just a tad less central at times). It is quite amusing to watch, though. I attempt to pan across in Mike’s general direction every now and then, but only last a few seconds before my camera goes ‘nope, back to Justin’). Anyway, the point is that he’s what I see when I listen to it and the, um, bouncy, hip thrusty thing he does through most of the song… yeah, that *happy sigh*. On another note, I’d love to be able to play this one on the guitar. Not that I can really play anything, but knowing what the chords are might help a little in any potential attempts, doomed to failure as they may be. I wonder if someone will give them to me if I ask *muses*. While I’m on the subject, I’d actually love to learn half the back catalogue *cough*TEARDROPS*cough*, but since most of it only sounds so damn good because Russ & Justin are phenomenally talented… I think it might be best to leave it to the professionals in this case. Which is a shame, because I’d LOVE to be able to play the Cadillac riff.
The Ghost King of Rock and Roll – Really like the story telling in this and it makes me want to dance. It definitely is a fabulous rock number and I hope it’s on the setlist for tour (not least because it has inspired one of my potential banners). I’d probably have more to say about it if I hadn’t heard it before, but I do have a soft spot for it. I think it would make a cool music video too. A girl in the crowd at a Last Carnival gig, perhaps? Pretending to be uninterested and by the end she’s the screaming fan in the front row? Not very original, maybe, but it could be cute.
Life Keeps Dancing – For some reason this doesn’t particularly stand out for me, perhaps because it’s nested in amongst a couple of favourites. It’s not a bad little song though and it has a great, happy vibe to it. I actually made a point of going back and playing it through a few times so I could give it the attention it deserved (and it didn’t do any harm that High is the next track *shivers with antici…*). The more I hear it, the more I like it. There’s something quite old school about it, I think. I can imagine watching them perform it on a clunky CRT TV, in crisp matching suits, perhaps on Top Of The Pops the way it used to be several decades ago (think TOTP2)? Or maybe one of those old American TV shows, like the ones Elvis used to do? It makes me feel young for some reason – I like it :P! It’s also been bugging me that there’s a riff-y bit that sounded familiar. I couldn’t place it for ages & finally worked out it reminds me of Eteins La Lumiere (which is by some French singer, but I know it from Dracula – L’Amour Plus Fort Que La Mort). It doesn’t actually sound that similar on the record, but when I attempt to play it on an acoustic guitar, aside from my appalling playing, it sounds just like it. Another mystery solved!
High – *…pation*! This song does things to me. And I am not just talking about the guitar solo(s – I like them both, even if I have a slight bias towards the second one), although that really doesn’t help. There is something about the slow, thrumming beat that just gets to me, but I don’t think this is a suitable place to talk about it. Just assume the rest of this review includes a lot of lip biting, tightly crossed legs and *the remainder of this sentence has been censored for your benefit*.
Top of the Hill – I’m still not really a fan of this one, which is a shame as I think that’s only because I ruined it for myself by over-playing badly recorded live performances. I think maybe the music is too quiet for the most part? *shrug* well, I suppose you can’t love ’em all. Although, that said, I am rather fond of the instrumental bit. Possibly because it reminds me just slightly of the Rock Of Ages curtain call… For some reason I keep picturing Dan Fletcher doing his boppy walk to the front of the stage before showering the front row with a handful of confetti. Or maybe that’s just me.
Luisa Rey – I’m leaving this one out again. I probably should go back and review all the oldies that I’ve known for ages (well it feels like ages, even though I only discovered the band a couple of months back – and how weird is that? This time 2 months ago I had absolutely no idea that 5 gorgeous, talented lads were about to turn my life upside down. Again. *sigh*. You’d think I’d have learned my lesson by now), but I don’t really know where to start with them, so it’s probably not going to happen.
The Whole Wild World – Another one that gets a bit lost if I don’t listen out for it. Well except for the ‘eeye-ho’ bits. Which I’m sure I’ve heard before on some Last Carnival live recording or something, but I can’t place it. Maybe Russ did it at one of the shows I saw and I’ve just forgotten? I’m certain I haven’t heard the song before, but I can clearly picture him doing the back and forth bit with the audience… Not that it’s bugging me or anything *twitches*. I listened to my entire collection of ripped TLC stuff and still couldn’t find it though. Maybe I dreamed it. Anyway, that’s not important. What’s important is your happiness, kid. (Sorry, sorry, my life seems to be one long string of Rock of Ages quotes at the moment, I can’t stop.) No, what’s actually important is that it’s a good song. Not a favourite, but I like it. It’s cheerful. Yay! Though I would like to know who Caroline is too – another random conversation starter for Russ at the stage door, I suppose!
The Scream Boy Shuffle – This song makes me wish I could swing dance like my baby sister. In fact, when listening to this and unable to stop my hands from jiving (in the form of tapping my palms against my thighs), I found myself seriously considering returning to some form of dance class for the first time in months. I might even go to swing, just so I can dance to this song the way it is so meant to be danced to *muses*. I wonder if I can persuade a band member to jive with me at the stage door… 😛 Ads might be up for it, he salsas apparently (which is something I would very much like to see for myself!). I did have a weird dream a while ago in which I was trying to teach the boys to waltz out the back of some venue or other. As I recall I was dancing with Justin, getting him to help me demonstrate. My mind can be a very weird place sometimes. Anyway, sort of drifted off topic there. Point is, I love this song. It’s not really my style, but the rhythm gets right under my skin anyway and has my foot tapping involuntarily. I’ve said it before, but it has a very classic sound to it. Like Jerry Lee Lewis or someone of that ilk. It sounds like it should have a double bass on it. On that note, I want to see this live again just so I can watch Kieran on keys. Not that it’s got a particularly distinctive piano sound on the track, but I can imagine him getting quite into it! I also like the chanty bit, mostly because I think it’s sort of adorable. Which is possibly not the effect they were going for, but there you have it! I think I remember Justin dancing over to share Mike’s mic (teehee) for that bit when they performed it live as well. Although I could be making that up.
Too Many Dreams Have Gone – This also gets a bit lost somewhere between the hype of the previous song and the grand finale of the next, but the one thing that really sticks out for me (and this is going to shock you, I know), is the guitar. I really love it. It’s so subtle, yet sweepingly beautiful and almost achingly poignant. I like the big *been drafting this for two days and still can’t think of the word* crescendo-y rendition of the final chorus too, right from the slow build up in ‘We’re all gonna dream together’. I kinda want to see this live just for the guitars, and that has nothing (much) to do with a particular musician (honest!). I just think they’re stunning on this particular track.
There’s A Road – I really do love this one, especially the first lines of the chorus (the ‘Stay close to me..’ bits). It actually reminded me of something and it took me a while to work out what, but I managed to put my finger on it eventually. It’s probably the ballady feel and the fact I picture a big, black, perfectly polished, grand piano whenever I hear it, but it kinda reminds me of some of *whispers* Gary Barlow’s old solo material (may I just take a moment to fangirl over the new album again? *squee*! Thank you!). Obviously, from me, that’s a huge compliment, but I’m not sure how Russ & co. would feel about that particular comparison! I’d love to hear this one outside of a normal gig environment though, with the band dressed in fancy dinner suits and Kieran seated at the aforementioned shiny grand piano (and me in a ridiculously expensive, slinky, silk evening gown, glittering Jimmy Choos, wrists dripping with diamonds, being swept across a gleaming chequerboard dancefloor by some dashingly attractive man – and no he isn’t called Justin! Dylan, perhaps ;)). Aaaand back to reality; an ancient iPod, jeans, a hoodie, holey socks and a Last Carnival beaded bracelet… *sigh* Anyhoo, I tend to focus more on melodies than lyrics when it comes to Last Carnival songs, but I don’t feel I can mention this one without drawing attention to the lyrics. They’re really quite beautiful.
I’m skipping the bonus tracks again because, well, I am (though I still absolutely love Cadillac and realised recently that I’m pretty much incapable of listening to it without strumming an air guitar), but I will say this. I found some old stuff a few weeks ago (some older than others – there’s a pre-Justin song called Carousel that’s absolutely brilliant), including the Luisa Rey EP. There is a track on there called Teardrops which could well be a contender for one of my all time favourite songs. It’s stunning and it totally sucks that I’ll never get to see them play that one live. I’d also like to know what happened to Golden Age Of Nothing, because that’s another awesome song and I will probably never get tired of watching the video *giggles*. I still can’t pick a favourite moment but it has to be a toss up between Adam peering out from behind the curtain and/or his expression when he hits the triangle (or actually just Adam through most of the video, he looks stunning in that white jacket), Kieran’s accordion face or the phenomenal group dance routine in the colourful trousers and masks. Why they took it down, I will never know. In fact, while I’m on the subject, there also appears to be a video for Stars, shot in Paris of all places (note: this is a good thing, I love Paris, I love the Last Carnival, ergo both at the same time must be some sort of otherworldly bliss), and they took that down too so I can’t watch it, which is beyond frustrating. I’m dying to see it.
Aaaanyway…I was going to pick a favourite at this point, but I don’t think I can. There are some I like more than others, but to be honest, it’s just a damn good album. Though I guess if pressed, the highlights for me are probably No Hero (shocker), High & There’s A Road. Which is unfortunate as I’m not really expecting to get to hear either of the last two live. Still, I know I’ll be hearing No Hero again and as for the rest, I’m persevering in my resolve not to try and uncover any setlist spoilers before Glasgow, so I guess I’ll just have to be patient (not my strongest quality) and wait and see. I’ll find out for myself what they are & aren’t playing soon enough :).
In other-ish news, I came up with a fabulous lyric-based banner idea the other day. The only trouble is, it’s a bit cheeky and I’m shy. Hmm, maybe I should rephrase that; It’s a bit cheeky and I’m shy… when I actually have to face the subject of said cheeky banner afterwards. Telling Gary Barlow I want him to take me with his (k)night moves is fine. Suggesting to Adam Pitts that he bang me instead of his drums is equally a-ok. Asking Justin to do anything at all? Not so much. Except it really is a cracking banner. Or at least, it’s an improvement on the rather uninspired general band ones I’ve come up with thus far (though I am quite fond of the No Hero one. Watch this space, I’ll post a picture when it’s done and the band have actually seen it – wouldn’t want any spoilers!). Still, I’m not sure I’d be able to look him in the eye afterwards. Maybe I should take it to Glasgow and get drunk first. Plus I can just wave it from the back of the room rather than right in front of his face… In fact, there are definite possibilities in that.
And while I’m on the subject, I kinda want to make banners for Kieran & Ads as well, but I have a limited number of gigs (and hands) so I might have to settle for general band ones. Plus the Justin one, obviously, because let’s face it, the boy is getting a banner whether he wants one or not and it’s going to be cheeky, because that’s how I roll. I may just need a bit of Dutch courage before I actually let him see it. Or I’ll wimp out completely and just fold it up hand it to him at the stage door before running away and hiding. Or I’ll tweet him a photo of it after the tour is over and I never have to face him again… 😛 It’s not even that bad. It’s just a bit cheeky rather than the filth I usually come up with (see Adam Pitts above) plus as I said, it’s lyric-based so they started it! I don’t know why I’m making such a fuss really, but I think I’d probably feel stupid whatever it said. I’m still not down with the dynamic here. I mean, they’re a band & I fangirl over them, but at the same time they’re like real people (bizarre, or what?! :P) and I can actually talk to them. They’re not my friends, but they’re not strangers either. It’s weird. I’m confused.
UPDATE: I now have a truly inspired idea for a banner for Kieran (ok, not that inspired, but I think/hope it’ll make him smile, which is really the goal of the entire exercise), so that’s definitely happening. Which also means I need one for Ads because I don’t want to leave him out. (And yes, I know I’m still leaving out Russ & Mike, but I never really talk to them either in person or online, so it’s kinda hard to direct anything at them on a personal level. I don’t even know what goodies to buy them for the stage door :(. Sorry boys, I do love you too, I promise!)
Anyhoo, on that note, I’m off for another reluctant holiday from theatre, before I’m back with McFly on Sunday & Dylan’s Drew (*squee*) on Monday. Happy Succot to anyone who celebrates it & enjoy eating indoors in the dry and the warmth for anyone who doesn’t! I will see you on the other side!
Peace, loVe loVe and happiness, K xx
PS. I really am sorry for all the brackets, it’s an addiction (another one – argh, see?!) or a nervous habit or something. I am, however, not at all sorry for the fangirling. Just so we’re clear.
PPS. A serious note: Having poured over this post for days and read through it more times than I wish to count, I’ve given up trying to make myself sound less crazy without just cutting everything that isn’t a straightforward, but ultimately rather flat & emotionless, opinion of the music. I know it’s rambling and almost nonsensical at times, but I really AM nervous. I may not publish much any more, but I’ve had this blog for three years now (seems I just missed the anniversary actually) and I’ve never stopped writing posts for it, even if they rarely see the light of day. It’s a very personal thing and although I’ve told a few people about it over time, I’ve never exposed myself quite as thoroughly as I have this week. Whether any of The Last Carnival actually see this is sort of irrelevant. The fact is, I have now publicly and irreversibly declared that this is me. There’s no more hiding behind the anonymity of an initial and that is really quite terrifying. So I guess what I’m trying to say is please bear with me while I adjust, because it’s turned out to be far scarier than I ever dreamed that it would be. Thank you :).
PPPS. If you actually made it this far I’m not sure whether to congratulate you or suggest you check yourself into a mental institution, but either way, you have my undying gratitude (and if you fancy leaving a comment as well, that could very well make my week)! *hugs*!
So Currently Captivated 
Leave a comment