Following the success of well received 2004’s EP ‘Folly’, quartet ENGINEERS return with the release of their eponymously titled debut album on Echo. It's inspired by a love of Dennis Wilson’s “Pacific Ocean Blue” and Talk Talk’s “Spirit Of Eden” and proclaims: “We don’t sound like anything current. We don’t do it deliberately. It’s just the way our music turns out. We’re not like anyone else.” Hmm, despite this statement, it seems inevitable shoegazing comparisons will follow.
The lush soundscape of the opening ‘Home’, is light, uplifting and soothing as if basking in an ironed out, easy-listening Beta Band. Simon Phipps, Mark Peters and Dan McBean share guitar and vocal duties, while Sweeney concentrates on floating just above his drum kit. The textured vocal qualities imbued in lines like “is this my home, I'm starting over” provide the grounded lyrical focus and hook and - despite the ethereality - never let the music drift away completely .
‘Waved On’ ‘slows things down with an easy grace and the lush vocals are immersed and coated with sugar glazed sweetness. Songs like ‘New Horizons’ and 'How Do You Say Goodbye', meanwhile, suffer from moments of external lapses, sometimes becoming too detached and lacking in focus. This isn't a problem with new single ‘Foregiveness’ which excels in the emotional warmth of a picturesque autumn day and is a real standout track.
|
Elsewhere, the wonderfully atmospheric ‘Come In Out Of The Rain’ could find the band a niche audience similar to the one Doves have managed to carve out for themselves. By contrast, the airy circulation of ‘One in Seven’ - with its rousing grandiose finish as the high level of sweeping harmonies refuse to fall away - is yet another different kind of tension. The real strength of the album is that I can’t find a bad track amongst the 11 on offer.
Listeners will find solace in this form off-kilter atmospheric rock. Engineers are a clean break from the current crop of D.I.Y guitar bands, using cleverly created, layered and spaced pop that doesn’t demand your attention but instead quietly releases its' subtle, understated charm on you. It's a likeable seduction.
"Engineers"' tender and sorrowful way will inevitably weaken the hardest of critic. This is a record that never sounds engineered but lovingly crafted with due care and attention. Good start.
|
