| I know I believe in nothing, but it's.... |
| My Nothing. |
| Page last updated; 17th April 2003 |
| Gold Against the Soul |
| Track listing; 1. Sleepflower 2. From Despair to Where 3. La Tristesse Durera (Scream to a Sigh) 4. Yourself 5. Life Becoming a Landslide 6. Drug Drug Druggy 7. Roses in the Hospital 8. Nostalgic Pushead 9. Symphony of Tourette 10. Gold Against the Soul The album opens with sleepflower, a traditionally stompy, rock �n roll introduction to the Manics. It�s a track which can easily be lumped with symphony of tourettes and nostalgic pushead, as for the most part they are unremarkable ditty�s lacking heart in some ways. Each of course has its moments, for example the guitar rift at 3min 30 in sleepflower. However, it�s hard to feel the album would fall down without them with sleepflower being the most vital for inclusion out of the three. From despair to where and la tristesse durera sound ahead of their time, especially when compared to other tracks on the album. To the casual observer these songs seem to fit better with tracks from the everything must go era or later. Without a doubt, these two songs were pivotal in bringing the Manics to the attention of the record buying masses, yet whilst being commercially friendly they do not sacrifice any of the quality and topic integrity we have come to associate with the Manics. Life becoming a landslide is undoubtedly the highpoint of the album and I defy anyone to listen to it without at least humming along with the, and I hesitate to apply this term to a Manics song, catchy chorus. At the same time as being deeply sad, it manages to be inspiring and infectious. Contrastingly, drug drug druggy is a track that can go either way depending on when, where and how you listen to it. On the whole, it�s not a bad track it just doesn�t jump out at you in a couple of listens. Roses in the hospital lacks something, that�s not to say it�s bad, far from it, but in some ways there is something missing which could have made it emerge as the best Manics song ever. Similarly, yourself lacks a certain spark. It seems to have so much potential, lyrically at least but, as in other albums, words and music do not meet on 100% good terms with the track sounding, at times, clumsily constructed. Finally, gold against the soul. The opening rift excites yet the track doesn�t wholly maintain this initial promise. It�s a good romp nonetheless but the album could have ended on a sweeter note. In conclusion, does this album gel; does it have the x-factor present in other albums? In a word, yes. An obvious development from its predecessor generation terrorists and a promise of greatness to come whilst satisfying the audiences needs of the here and now. Bravo. |
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