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Review
Audio Bullys were initially known for being the angry, loud epitome of early noughties hooligan house. Yet the duo have been fairly quiet since their frantic Nancy Sinatra revision Shot You Down smashed its way into the top three back in 2005.
Half a decade is along time away, so the question for listeners to Tom Dinsdale and Simon Franks’ third album must be: what do Audio Bullys have to say about the recession-ravaged, mephedrone-addled Britain of today?
In truth, not a lot. There isn’t much which marks Higher Than the Eiffel as being particularly progressive or even now; but it is a fun, vital party album packed full of what used to be called bangin’ tunes.
Booze and drugs references are still way up in the mix. Within seconds the album’s opener, Drums (On With The Story), pairs spacey synths with Franks singing, “What the hell are you on?” This is swiftly followed by lead single Only Man, a triumph of metallic guitar-ish samples, understated sax riffs and thumping Lo-Fidelity Allstars-echoing grooves. Two tunes in and the motivation is clear: stop what you’re doing and dance.
Aside from Daisy Chains, a wistful number redolent of I Monster’s Daydream In Blue, and closing track Goodbye, a moderately successful attempt at underrated Specials single Do Nothing, lairy times abound.
Feel Alright is a highlight. It sounds a bit like Justice nicking a fast, dangerously overheating Ford Cortina with the Beastie Boys, while Shaun Ryder drunkenly sings Kinky Afro in the back. It is tremendous, much like Twist Me Up. This is nothing less than a terrific, albeit unexpected, suburban punk tune about a relationship breaking down, and sounds like a stowaway from a Buzzcocks or Stranglers album.
Drained Out, perhaps the best song here, sees the album return to expected pastures, or rather filthy alleyways, with the couplet “I miss my girl, I miss my family, too much cocaine too much brandy” arriving amid some satisfyingly sleazy P-Funk.
There’s little crowd-pleasing electro or fashionable dubstep on Higher Than the Eiffel, but Audio Bullys have made a welcome, well-produced and lively returning album that delivers the goods far more often than even fans could have expected. Worth seeking out for times when the Friday night feeling is sorely needed. --Lou Thomas
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Variety with chunky, catchy tunes,
By Jamie (England) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Higher Than the Eiffel (Audio CD)
Big beat is back! Well you'd be forgiven for thinking this on hearing the first 2 tracks. Once the intro to 'Drums.... ' has developed into it's big beat outro it synchs straight into 'Only man' - which I'm sure you'll have already heard on the radio or in clubs. What a great start!I can understand why some people have given this album mixed reviews because this is where the big beat stops and the album changes tack rapidly. The next 4-5 tracks rely much more on their lyrical development and a slower catchy beat. Of particular note amongst these tracks are 'Feel Alright' and 'Dynamite' but to be honest the more I listen (and I'm playing this a lot) the more I like the whole of this portion of the album. The latter of these 2 tracks starts with a light beat and shifts nicely into a funky vocal section. On many of these tracks the lyrics get stuck in your head and make you want to move with their beat - lyrics and music fits so well together. The 2nd half of the album kicks off with 'London Dreamer', another good track. Different to what we've heard so far as it contains a psychedelic element to it's beat. Much has been made of the collaborations and you can definitely hear the ska elements in many of the tracks, including 'London Dreamer' and the closer 'Goodbye' but I like this variety, it shows development and creativity beyond the norm. Finally, the hidden track is definitely not to be missed. A reworked version of 'Only Man' far more rocky and intense than it's original. It really is a gem tucked away at the end of rhe album. Not sure why a previous reviewer hasn't enjoyed this album, his review didn't seem to make much sense when you actually listen to this album. Personally, I think this is a tremendous advocate for the album art form which seems to be getting lost in the download era. Don't get me wrong I like picking and choosing tracks but I do still also like to listen to an album like this which has enough variety to keep the listener going for the full 60-70 mins. Definitely worth a fiver from Amazon! Especially seeing as there's so much more on this album that I've not mentioned. Enjoy!
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Future Belongs To Them,
By
This review is from: Higher Than the Eiffel (Audio CD)
The first Audio Bullys LP ('Ego War') is a classic, swaggering hooligan house brilliance, an album I played to death back in 2003 and 2004. As for the second LP ('Generation'), well, I never even bothered with it. I hated the Nancy Sinatra sampling single, a desperate bid for chart success as far as I was concerned, and the tracks off the LP I heard on the internet were awful. I thought Audio Bullys were finished. The five-year gap between 'Generation' and their third LP ('Higher Than The Eiffel') seemed to confirm this fact, a group struggling for inspiration, struggling to recapture the genius of their first effort.Then I heard 'Only Man' (the first single off the new LP) on the radio. I was pleasantly surprised. Was the old magic back? The old swagger was for sure. I wondered if it was a one-off, though, and bought this album more in hope than expectation. I can now state 'Only Man' isn't a one-off, this is a massive return to form. In fact it's better than 'Ego War'. There's more variety here. There's the stomping dance stuff, of course, but there are new wave influences ('Twist Me Up'), the deeply unpleasant and paranoid (this is a compliment) 'Smiling Faces', which switches from sweet pop to thumping beats in an instant, and string-laden epics like 'Drums (On With The Story)'. The only duffer is a slightly reggae-influenced track called 'Dragging Me Down'. The rest is big city tales, alcohol- and narcotic-fuelled hedonism and (occasionally) nostalgia. It's mostly dark but almost all brilliant.
5.0 out of 5 stars
brilliant come back,
By
This review is from: Higher Than the Eiffel (Audio CD)
love audio bullys and this album shows their talent as all the songs are great - reminds me of the 80s in a very good way - some of the previous reviewers have already summed it up pretty well so i don't need to say anymore apart from download it now
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