Everything's The Rush [Enhanced]

Delays have been for sometime now Indie-pop's best kept secret. After their sparkling debut 'Faded Seaside Glamour' mixed Beach Boys-esque harmonies, with the coolness of the Stone Roses and the falsetto of the Cocteau's, the sky seemed the limit for this Southampton fourpiece.

Second album 'You See Colours' in many ways scaled new heights but somehow missed the public consciousness that was otherwise preoccupied with the new breed of retro 80's rockers like the Killers, and the street commentary of the Arctic's, Delays seemed to have missed a great opportunity to strike it big, despite being the freshest sounding band to emerge in over a decade, willing to mix electronics with the sound of a definitive classic British guitar band.

And so to album number three, 'Everything's The Rush'.. After November's limited release 'Love Made Visible EP', that set the tone for a sharpness in sound and direction, like they'd finally struck a finely tuned balance, particularly on the Aaron Gilbert vocal led 'Panic Attacks', and the lead song Love Made Visible (which appears here), Delays seemed to be hinting that something great was on it's way, and they haven't disappointed..

Kicking off with 'Girls On Fire', a track devotees to their live shows are all too familiar with, a sweeping, bombastic wakeup call, this is the perfect intro to what can only be described quite aptly as a Rush of a record, one that deserves a place in every sane persons record collection, jammed between the La's and A Hard Days Night, probably.

And the energy just doesn't subside for one second as we stumble into lead single 'Hooray', Greg's self confessed OCD account. You'd be forgiven for finding the words a little twee unless you know what the song is about, it all makes sense and it's what Delays are all about, a 3 minute slice of pop of epic proportions.

Last years 'Love Made Visible' continues the trend of a killer hook and radio friendly pop that shouldn't disguise the tenderness of the lyrics, it's a love song without the pretentiousness that often goes with it, and the harmonies of their debut haven't been lost here.

'One More Lie In' is one of the cornerstones of the album, with Aaron taking lead vocal, it's a homage to laziness, Sunday morning's in bed watching TV and probably a fumble under the covers too. This is the Indie anthem of the Summer, if it gets the chance to be. A breathtakingly effortless track.

'Keep It Simple' is rumoured to be a candidate for the next single, though while it's sweeping strings and boldness are reminiscent of 'Everything Must Go' era Manics, it seems the water carrier on the album, not to play down it's quality, it's just that everything else here is so excellent. It's saved largely by a bassline Macca would be proud of from Colin Fox.

No classic album would be complete without an anthemic, bitter sweet love song. Bringing back memories of mid 90's tracks by The Verve and Cast, 'Pieces' is the albums epic track, a perfect centre piece, with lush strings and possibly Greg's finest vocal performance, which is some accolade for one of the finest voices in Britpop.

The only thing stopping 'One More Lie In' being the anthem of the Summer is the next track, the string-loop laden 'Touch Down'. Already firmly becoming a live favourite, tinged with Aaron's lovely synth hooks and it's scorching beat. "If you go I'll be calling on the radio".. A snipe at their problems breaking into the mainstream media? Who knows, it sounds brilliant anyway and you'll be hooked from the first listen. If ever a song was made for Radio, this is it.

'You're Friends Are False' could well be the best song Delays have come up with so far, it's certainly a candidate for the finest track on the album, all sneer, distorted voices and '83 era Simple Minds/U2 style guitars. Aaron's delivery is sharp and in your face, "I only came here coz you asked me to, you're friends are false".. Greg's chorus and Fox's killer bass help deliver a rampaging track that you never want to end. Greg and Aaron have developed a classic vocal combination on this song, two brothers too, you couldn't write this kind of stuff... Which flows into one of the many single candidates, 'No Contest'...

Aaron is at his best here, though at times it verges on something that sounds somewhere between Busted and Feeder (I kid you not), the sound is glorious, the chorus breathtaking and the attention to close detail and the arrangement of the vocal harmonies is simply stunning, this is already on it's way to being filed amongst my favourite guitar-driven pop nuggets, it's catchy alright, and the Valentine-ish synth bass riff makes the hairs on the neck stand up.

The album climaxes as all good albums do with the a brilliant closer, the dreamy lush of 'Jet Lag'. With more gorgeous harmonies from the boys, and the lovely refrain "Goodbye my friend, this is the end..", if the album closed here few would complain, it's a fitting end to a masterpiece of an album, but there's an encore of sorts left in Bonus Track 'The Earth Gave Me You'.

Bonus tracks are all too often glorified b-sides, but anyone who knows Delays knows they don't do b-side quality even for their b-sides. Instead we're treated to another engaging track, starting with a solo piano riff that runs throughout the song, building into an intro sounding similar to The Cranberries 'Dreams' and dominated by the familiar falsetto of Greg, he's really in his element on this track, which is fitting, because it's a nod to their earlier stuff that may be the criticism for some of this otherwise fantastic album. The toning down of Greg's trademark falsetto. Not that that's an entirely bad thing, the mix is perfect, the album is perfect.

As the Amazon review says, 'turn up the speakers'. This is an album that deserves to be played very loud, from the rooftops!!

Okay, I'm one of the few Yanks who's actually heard of this fantastic band. I've ordered their last two releases from Amazon UK because we're too damn slow to new music here in the States! I pre-ordered from AUK and received the disc in my door three days before it was even scheduled to drop in the US - and it was almost half the price of ordering the "import" on Amazon US. Nice!

That said, here's my brief review of "Everything's The Rush."

I like it. I like it A LOT. Yet, I can't help but think the boys are taking an ill-advised whack at the mainstream on this one. I thought "You See Colours" was a brilliant step up from their amazing debut "Faded Seaside Glamour." I was hoping for a similar evolution on ETR. The first four tracks are outright genius. However, the disc sort of sputtered-out for me as I made it through the last few tracks. Who knows, maybe those last few songs will start to grow on me?

I'll be the first to admit, I miss the falsetto on this record. The vocals are strong, but I really dig it when Greg Gilbert layers his various vocal styles and leads with the high stuff. That's probably just me. I thought Aaron's vocals were just "okay." Again, I may be in the minority here, but I'm glad his vocal contribution was limited. That said, "One More Lie In" is an absolutely killer track. Layers, fatness, big beats. Really great stuff.

Please read my comments in the context of my four-star rating. This is a very solid release. The Delays are one of the best bands going right now - stupidsolid musicianship, great production and really nice songwriting.

Buy it!

Simultaneously makes me want to get up, jump around (in an attempt at dancing) and go for a lie-down ...
The lyrics can be a bit cheesy or plain lazy sometimes - but you just get so swept along with the melody it's hard to care.
Buy it, I guarantee a single listen will leave a big grin on your face and a warm-buzzy feeling inside ;-)
[now who is being cheesy]