poppedmusic

Rooftops

Released May 7th 2012

Having looked forward to listening to Rooftops after rather enjoying what was on offer from lead single, New York, I ended up being somewhat despondent in the end. There are moments of high but I have started to question if these moments of high would be considered high in other circumstances. That is to say that perhaps they are only moments of high on an album that feels at worst lazy and at best just reasonable.

There are certainly times where this album almost gets it right, Where’s The Love has some great psychedelic hints with the guitar ( the solo toward the end is particularly enjoyable and reminded me a little bit of early Verve but not quite as good) and then the lazy lyrics woooh ah oooo. (You have to get used to this kind of wooing, not in the romantic sense, because it happens rather frequently on this album. Shake Shake would probably be a song that I enjoy everything about. It has the attitude that other tracks lack, it has a bit of grit and it lifts the album significantly for me. (I’m debating out loud if i should tell you that it sounds like a bit of a rip off of a Jet track or not, so maybe don’t read this bit? although, probably too late right?). The start of title track Rooftops had me interested for a while, sadly they went with an opening lyric “up on a rooftop in London town” at which point I want to turn it off (every time). It actually grows into quite a good chorus, I just don’t like the verses or the lyrics in those verses.

Cry, is a track that I quite like, I don’t love it, it’s not breaking any boundaries, it’s not got anything interesting or clever in the vocal, the lyric nor the guitar it’s all a bit like “my first song”, rather than a track you expect to hear on a band’s second album. It’s harmless enough though and it’s also over quite quickly and it has its use because it does give another layer to the album and it does feel like it needs it. It’s quite sweet and I guess that’s what makes me like it a little, it shows vulnerability, in its own way.

The Sea have also managed to write and record a song that could easily fit on an album by Fun. which is actually really cool (i think!). It’s called Silly Love Song. It’s a shame though because if they’d have just gone in for this sort of thing in the first place they may have come up with a much different album, and dare I say it a better one?  It’s also a shame because it feels like the style of the track is done as a piss take when it could easily be the best track on the album and could have got them a lot more radio play than I think they will from most other tracks.

A very mixed reaction from me here I think on this one. My mind is changed as songs go along, it’s not that I particularly hate any of it, but it doesn’t ignite anything in me really and though I probably shouldn’t use the next phrase in a review, I really just feel a bit Meh!