CRAWLER
4TH ALBUM FOR THE IDLES
RELEASED ON NOV 12TH, 2021 ON PARTISAN RECORDS
WHAT THIS ALBUM DOES WELL: Right from the start you get a sense you are in for a ride unlike most when you absorb an album for the 1st time. Now in complete disclosure and fairness I had my reservations based on the 2 previous tracks released before this album went live. I have never been happier to be wrong. Especially when you get this incredible 1st track in "MTT 420 RR". Lead Singer Joe Talbot throws us for a loop when he channels his inner most Leonard Cohen and Jim Morrison with a little less of the bravado and flair that has become more of his signature. Yet it works perfectly sonically. It is a great intro and really shows how far musically and technically this band has come. THAT BEING SAID...don't be fooled that you aren't going to get what made The Idles...The Idles. Literally the very next song is when that technical prowess pays off tenfold and you get all of Talbot's signature fury, Jon Beavis' percussion explosions, Adam Devonshire's deep bass, and the bending strings of Mark Bowen and Lee Kiernan with what is one of my favorite tracks on the album, "The Wheel". It is classic Idles but with a more resounding and cleaner, (as Saul Goodman would say) with just the right amount of dirty in it, Tour-de-Force.
The other incredible thing about this album as you go along is you get a little of everything, some 80's new wave sounds, some Clash-like early British Punk Rock, and even a little Velvet Underground/60's beatnik rock. Talbot himself evens gives you flashes of his range, in "MTT 420 RR" you get the Cohen/Morrison like I said, but then he hits you with this incredible melodic vocal styling that shows this man can really fucking sing. There are many times like in "When The Lights Come On" you get this almost Jello Biafra/Al Jourgensen conversational tone from him and you think, wait, what? Yet it works so well with the musical arrangement.
Really sonically this album is near flawless. I mean the percussion elements, with the booming bass, and then the occasional string bends and ripping rhythm anthem-like cords that have become other Idles signatures are really well placed and well done, and just different enough to show range and experimentation that really gravitate you to songs like "The New Sensation". This 80's New Wave beat that starts you out into this biting declaration by Talbot to "shake your bum like you don't give a shit" is the antithesis of what I have been talking about and is of course another favorite track of mine. It's so different from most of what you would hear in the first 3 albums by The Idles. "The End" is another one of those that almost plays like a rock anthem in the vein of The Killers or Modest Mouse. To be fair I am still not a fan of "Car Crash" but because of getting the full scope of this album's senses I do think I am gravitating to liking "The Beachland Ballroom" more than I had when I heard it on its own.
WHY YOU SHOULD CHAMPION THIS ALBUM: That's the power of Crawler. It shows ranges The Idles have never even attempted to touch and goes in many, many directions that should attract different people to it for different reasons. Yet with all that, it still sounds very much like The Idles and has all their wonderful idiosyncrasies, quirks, and signatures layered in that make this band for me so amazingly special. I would have said listen to the first 3 albums because if this your first foray into experiencing The Idles you may not get it right away, but then again this might be the perfect album to skip ahead into because it is so eclectic and well orchestrated. It should tantalize so many fans of so many different types of music. Where the first 3 albums has sparks of that but really its them finding their way and you gravitate to them because they are so brash and fierce in exploring what their way is. I am not sure after this album they have that answer yet but while it might be called Crawler, with this offering they are walking at a pace that should lead into a full sprint of exciting music to come.
IF YOU ARE A FAN: Old school British Punk like The Clash, 80's New Wave, Leonard Cohen, and The Killers, you might get into The Idles
YOU CAN GET THE ALBUM HERE
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Definitely agree with the assessment. Actually do like the two lead off singles, especially Beachland Ballroom because it's definitely a vulnerable track and for me, part of that feeling really connects. I think it's another solid outing though being darker, I think other albums will win people over and that eventually they find this one and know it's the perfect album for right now. To range, variety, and honesty
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