Amazon.co.uk allows you to pay for your items in your local currency. Restrictions apply. Learn More. |
Frequently Bought Together
Product details
|
Product Description
Amazon.co.uk Review
Review
Dark On Fire is not without its good points. Olly Knights is in fine voice again, with the rawness that he does best occasionally shining through. But, unfortunately, large parts of the album will sound musically predictable, even to the most ardent fan.
Summing up the problem here is 'Stalker', which as the name suggests, is not about the most pleasant of subjects, but the tone of the music and the delivery of the words mean all trace of menace is absent. Disappointing, in essence.
The exception is title track, 'Dark On Fire' which sounds both mournful and hopeful at the same time. They've used strings to emphasise, not overshadow, the acoustic sound, and the chorus showcases the band's hallmark vocal harmonies. It is a sound that doesn't need much added to it to give it an epic, haunting sound.
But all of that promise and atmosphere is wasted as soon as 'Real Life' starts. Do yourself a favour and press the skip button.
While not reaching the heights of 'Dark On Fire', album opener 'Last Chance' is upbeat, punchy and pacy, not something you would have managed being written about a Turin Brakes song a few years back, with a fantastic guitar line from Gale Paridjanian. 'Bye Pod' (lovely little banjo-sounding refrain) and 'Here Comes The Moon' (you really don't hear enough xylophones these days) also have their strong points, while closer 'New Star' leaves you feeling more positive as the album draws to a close.
So while there is more scale, more ambition and a fuller sound to their latest album, you can't help but feel that they haven't managed to build on their early promise. In moving forward, the feeling is they have left something vital behind. --Helen Groom
Find more music at the BBC This link will take you off Amazon in a new window
Suggested Tags from Similar Products(What's this?)Be the first one to add a relevant tag (keyword that's strongly related to this product)
|
Customer Reviews
|
Share your thoughts with other customers:
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Saved but not by the underdog,
By
This review is from: Dark on Fire (2 Disc Version) (Audio CD)
Hmmm.. One of my all time favourite albums is the 'Optimist LP' the first album Turin Brakes served up back in 2001. Excellent guitar melodies combined with first class singing delivery and in places mesmerising lyrics. The follow ups to this debut were just as good. First up was 'Ether song' which made a mockery of the so called challenging second album syndrome where they challenged themselves to create a truly atmospheric piece. Then with 'Jackinabox' they proved they could write more accessible music that oozed quality throughout.So when I saw this album come out, I naturally picked it straight up and purchased it. Conclusion, well I am not quite sure. I think it is ok. Not groundbreaking, didn't make me sit up and take notice and realise that they put a lot of effort into this album. It just recovers old ground we have seen before through the past albums producing tracks of similar sounding to those on 'Optimist LP' and 'Jack In A Box' but without ever really hitting the nail on the head. I think a fair branding for Dark On Fire would be it is a collection of nearly songs. Nearly made it on to the album, filler songs. It is as shame. It is not that I don't like it, I do. But it floats out of my head as soon as I have listened to it. The version of the album I brought had the extra 'Something Out Of Nothing EP' cd included. This saved the album. It was a bit more like the stuff I was hoping for from them. 'Invisible Boy' is especially good. So overall, if you are a big Turin Brakes fan then go for it, but don't expect anything groundbreaking. If you are fancying a try, then go for any of the previous three albums. *** Like :- Sebadoh, Kings Of Convenience, Tom McRae ***
8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Awesome - Ipod on Fire!,
By PetShopChap (Salisbury, UK) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Dark on Fire (2 Disc Version) (Audio CD)
I totally disagree with the previous review - this album is brilliant. Better than JackInABox and on a par with the first two. Last Chance, Dark On Fire and For The Fire are standout tracks. Shame Stalker was the lead single - it doesn't represent the quality within.Yes, the sound is less accoustic, but the beauty is still there. I'm still surprised that more people aren't buying their records. Turin Brakes continue to be a cut above the rest.
5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Best album I've heard this year,
By
This review is from: Dark on Fire (Audio CD)
Outstanding album, reflecting the more rock side of Turin Brakes typical live performance. A natural progression, without losing their distinctive sound.
Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
Would you like to see more reviews about this item?
|
Most Recent Customer Reviews |
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Listmania!
|
|
Look for similar items by category
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
