Robbie Williams – Take The Crown Album Review

Robbie Williams – Take The Crown

Let’s be honest here – you probably missed this, despite it and lead single Candy debuting at Number 1. This 9^th full-length from the Northern prince of pop shouldn’t seem like a comeback album, but if it was meant to be so, then the Robbie of this decade is thoughtful, slightly self-deprecating and honest. Be A Boy and Gospel are both reflections on youth, and his career and lost love respectively. Candy, written with Take That pal Gary Barlow, is a masterpiece of pop, whilst Different, also written with Captain Barlow, is this decades’ Feel. He moves into summery, electro-pop with S*** On The Radio and All That I Want, before slowing down for Hunting For You. He gets slightly bitter on Into The Silence before ramping it up for Hey Wow Yeah Yeah – it’s not a lyrical masterpiece, but that doesn’t seem to matter for Vauxhall, who use the track in the advert for their Corsa. Not Like The Others is anthemic for a song seemingly about sex, whilst Losers is just acoustic loveliness. If you’re lucky enough to get the deluxe edition, you’re treated to Reverse (another slow-but-good ‘un) and Eight Letters, a solo piano reworking of the Take That track. Don’t think just because your mum probably likes Robbie that you can write him off as old; Mr Williams is still alive, kicking and bringing out some brilliant albums while he’s at it. 9/10

Download: Candy, Different, Into The Silence, Not Like The Others

Live Reviews

Say Something Presents: Kids In Glass Houses/Rubix, University of Surrey/13^th October 2012

Kicking things off tonight is young, local band Dials, playing their 5^th show ever. Playing to a largely empty room is always a problem for first supports, but they don’t seem to let it faze them, rewarding the early attendees with excellently executed pop-rock and a Twitter competition to win goodie bags. (7)  Next up is Midgar, from Guildford, who are undeniably talented. Unfortunately, the room is nowhere near full yet, and that talent falls on deaf ears. (7)

Main support tonight comes from Kent quintet Hildamay. The five-piece are already starting to blaze a trail in the underground scene, and with the recent release of their debut album Miles Away, that doesn’t look like it’s going to stop. Frontman Tim Lawrence’s vocals are rough and almost synonymous with throwaway hardcore, but there are melodies here; Hildamay put on the most energetic performance so far tonight. (8)

Kids In Glass Houses are beginning to become something of a juggernaut, yet are always the “ones to watch”. However, those that attach that stigma to them have failed to see what a smooth rock outfit they’ve become. With a set spanning all three albums, plus a new song, they bombard the crowd with fantastic track after fantastic track. Vocalist Aled Phillips is a charismatic ball of talent and showmanship, and has the crowd eating out of his hand. The band look pleased to be here, and make sure that everyone is happy they came. KIGH are Ones To Watch, but not because they’re ABOUT to achieve something great; they’ve already got there and it’d be shame to miss out. (9)

Live Music

SPECTOR – 10/11/12 Shepherds Bush Empire, London

Spector first appeared on the music radar around May of last year and since the release of their debut single ‘Never Fade Away’, their witty and melancholic lyrics paired with a somewhat raucous edge have been making many a person such as me crave to see them live. The subsequent release of their album ‘Enjoy it while it lasts’ including tracks such as ‘Chevy Thunder’, ‘Celestine’ and the lesser known ‘Grim Reefer’ along with ‘Upset Boulevard’ merely added fuel to the fire. The time finally came. They did not disappoint. At Shepherds Bush Empire – quite a big venue but it still managed to retain a sense of intimacy -the first balcony, right at the front, in the very centre was where we stood. Good a place as any. As the support acts played (LULS, Splashh, and Swim Deep – all great at hyping the crowd with their own music) we spotted Fred Macpherson (Spector’s lead singer) watching to our right. We naturally popped over to say hello, and what a cool guy (and yes those glasses are genuine) but he had a live show to perform so we didn’t want to keep him. They opened with ‘Twenty Nothing’ and you could tell from the first song that it was going to be an incredible night. They tore up the stage and the atmosphere was the definition of electric. Their 12 track repertoire went ridiculously fast and it felt like no time had passed before they headed off stage and it was the crowds’ job to coax them back on with our acapella version of ‘Never Fade Away’. They returned for said one last song and it was an appropriate end to a great gig. One will definitely be booking tickets to see them live when they tour their next album whenever that may be.  In short, we certainly did enjoy it whilst it lasted.   

Lucy Rose  – 20/11/12 The Boileroom, Guildford

Renowned for her captivatingly honest lyrics and delicate yet incredibly resonating voice Lucy Rose had attained a strong and vast fan base before her debut album ‘Like I Used To’ was even released.  Touring her first album which includes tracks such as ‘Night Bus’, ‘Bikes’ and ‘Middle of the Bed’ to name but a few I knew it was going to be a magical performance. After her support act (Pete Roe – he’s worth a listen) finished it was only a short wait until she and her band came on. She began her set mere feet from me and my friend (just so happens to be the same one as the Spector gig, it was my birthday gift this time) and in fact she was so close that we had a little conversation with her in between songs – she even offered us her water when she overheard us saying we were thirsty. Lucy Rose is ridiculously lovely and as cliché as it sounds, has the voice of an angel, or perhaps better. Her standout tracks of the evening were ‘Place’, ‘Lines’, ‘Middle of the Bed’... If I’m being honest every single song she sang, she sang to perfection and I look forward to seeing her live again soon. After the gig she could be found at the little merch’ stand at the back selling her signature jam and tea (she is just the cutest) which she had previously plugged on her set so needless to say the queue was long. Did I have any money? No. Did I queue anyway just to tell her how great her set was? You bet I did. What was really charming was how much she appreciated us coming and how she offered to have a photo with us. I’d recommend seeing her live to anyone and I just hope she returns to the Boileroom soon (she did say it was one of the best gigs of the tour).

 Patrick Wolf – 4/12/12 NME Acoustic Session, NME Offices, London

When I got invited to see Patrick Wolf do an acoustic live session for NME I was of course not going to pass on the offer.  After waiting in the lobby with about 15 other people, we were directed into the lift and up into the NME office where right at the back nestled in front of a couch sat Patrick Wolf and his two accomplices. Dressed in chain-mail and armed with a harp I wasn’t sure what to expect, but that’s the thing with Patrick Wolf, you’re not supposed to. The intimate setting didn’t prevent him from executing his signature eccentric dancing whilst he played his ukulele and harp as he treated us to 4 acoustic tracks. These included an inventive cover of ‘Universal Soldier’ (originally by Buffy Saint Marie who he mentioned he’d recently been working with) and the aptly named ‘Wolf Song’ which he finished with. One got the impression that he preferred the more traditional set up of a stage with dramatic lighting and a crowd separate from the band, but towards the end he definitely became more comfortable with the fact that onlookers were watching from quite literally a foot away – for most of the session I was sitting cross legged at his feet, looking up at his performance (I had to hand him his pick when he dropped it).  Though it was only a session, his quirky and individual style came across in abundance as he acoustically executed his electric pop/folk songs, and it was fascinating to see how much he’s evolved and changed since songs such as ‘Magic Position’ from 2007. I would be intrigued to see him live again in a more traditional gig environment but frankly, I’d struggle to think of a better way to spend a Tuesday December evening.