The Magic Numbers first emerged five years ago with their self-titled debut album. A poorly received second album, Those the Brokes, followed a year later.
After a four year break the Stodart and Gannon siblings are back with their third album, The Runaway, which continues the darker themes of 2006’s Those the Brokes, while being careful not to lose the tunes.
One of the most appealing things about The Magic Numbers is main singer-songwriter, Romeo Stodart’s voice strung with romanticism and an ever present cracked vulnerability.
The album begins with gentle opener, The Pulse, a brave lament based around a simple hook, veritably soaked in strings (arranged by the late Robert Kirby, who worked on Nick Drake's Five Leaves Left). It sets the tone of the record perfectly - it reappear’s as an instrumental in a 'hidden track' at the end.
Reminiscent of 70s Fleetwood Mac is the gentle Hurt So Good, with the multi-layered harmonies. While Angela Gannon and Michelle Stodart take over vocal duties on the lovelorn, brisk folk of Why Did You Call?
Romeo’s vocals are complemented with some lovely vocal interplay with Sister Michelle - as in the gorgeous swooning harmonies of A Start With No Ending. Angela Gannon takes the lead vocal on the elegant Throwing My Heart Away.
However, the album doesn’t live up to it’s title ‘The Runaway’ instead it just keeps plodding along with more of the same sun-kissed smooth harmonies, which makes listening to it in it’s entirety somewhat of a chore.
Track listing:
1 The Pulse
2 Hurt So Good
3 Why Did You Call?
4 Once I Had
5 A Start With No Ending
6 Throwing My Heart Away
7 Restless River
8 Only Seventeen
9 Sound of Something
10 The Song That No One Knows
11 Dreams of a Revelation
12 I'm Sorry
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment