Much was made of Jeremey Warmsley’s first outing ‘The Art of Fiction’, and justly so. Warmsley came across as a fresh face with some wonderful melodies and harmonies to share, building layers upon layers to make his highly crafted electronic-pop. If there was a hint of pretension or pomposity at times, it could be given as youthful over eagerness. The success of the record saw him tour with the likes of Regina Spektor, The Shins and Daniel Johnston in the following months. In the meantime his contemporaries such as the Mystery Jets, Laura Marling and Noah and the Whale have gone on to bigger and better things. With ‘How We Became’ Warmsley attempts to follow that path of growth, pulling in Markus Dravs (Arcade Fire/ Bjork) on production duties.
Sadly, where once Warmsley’s needy ‘folktronica’ was charming, here it begins to wear thin. Lead track and single ‘Lose My Cool’ struggles with it’s charmless clunking synth and drum lines, and the fact that when Warmsley sings ‘ cool’ during the verses he sounds like Eric Cartman from South Park. The chorus lifts things a little, but still falls short of the slightness of hand and melodic interplay of his previous work.
All to frequently on ‘How We Became’ the processed beats comes on like a bargain basement Patrick Wolf. The beats throughout the record just sound cheap and tacky, and Warmsleys voice and lyrics are no match for his fellow londoner. Don’t even get me started on the production horrors of ‘Pressure’, which lyrically at least is an album highlight. In the hands of The Wave Pictures it could be something special, but the treatment given to it here, all bleeping synths and keyboards means it meanders aimlessly to a conclusion with little effect. This is one of the few highlights however, as frequently this maudlin look back at a wasted youth calls to mind Morrissey at his most self pitying lyrically. Imagine a Weezer album made up of songs that all sound like ‘Butterfly’ and you might start to get the idea.
Vocally Warmsley struggles at times with his falsetto, particularly on the album’s title track. The Bontempi beats of ‘Waiting Room’ further exposes his vocal frailties, as he occasionally yelps breathily, as if impersonating Beirut or David Byrne. ‘Dancing With The Enemy’ sounds like it could be a future single, with its simple keyboard lines and horn section, but it never really rings true and doesn’t particularly fit with the rest of the album.
Having promised so much from his debut album, ‘How We Became’ is an extremely disappointing follow up from the clearly talented Warmsley.
32%
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October 10th, 2008 at 11:44 am
32%? Wow. Haven’t heard this yet, but I wondered in the build-up to this whether he was going to get a proper commercial push, which seems not to be happening, and had scaled back the sound to the extent the two singles suggested. The Art Of Fiction worked almost because it had too many ideas for its pop structures. How does the recorded Craneflies shape up?
October 10th, 2008 at 1:15 pm
as i said…i did have high hopes……
October 10th, 2008 at 1:16 pm
don’t you think its a morrisey esque cover
October 10th, 2008 at 1:45 pm
Yes, that’s exactly what I thought when I saw it… JW is a reader of the site, but perhaps not any more…
October 10th, 2008 at 1:51 pm
The recorded version of Craneflies is goooooood - the piano sounds quite rich at the start of it.
32% is a little lower than I would give it, if I’m honest.
Oh, and yes, very Morrisey-esque cover! That’s what it reminded me of!
x:]
October 10th, 2008 at 2:23 pm
I wasn’t being harsh- Just going on the general criteria of marking here at TLOBF I stand by the low score.
1. I can’t imagine it attracting any new fans. The pop hooks that were so obvious on Art of Fiction seem to have vanished.
2. I can see that some previous fans might be a bit disapointed with the direction it’s headed.
JW seems to be trying to do what he does with some kind of genuine intent, and theres some nice ideas in evidence in places but they sort of fade out. I stand by the fact that some of the production is horrible. Vocally It didnt feel as strong as Art of Fiction.
Hopefully it will be a blip, as I do really like the first record. I will be interested to hear the next record….
Equally i’m a big Patrick Wolf fan and I wouldn’t have given the last record to much more either.
October 12th, 2008 at 4:37 am
Must say I disagree with the review wholeheartedly, I think ‘How We Became’ is a perfect follow-up to his wonderful debut. I’ll admit that at first I was underwhelmed but on repeated listens you start to pick out all the little moments that make the album so enjoyable to listen to.
I’m really finding it hard to comprehend your comments about ‘Pressure’ for example. I found so much to love about that song - the bassline, the nostalgic electronica and the thoughtful lyrics. You described it as meandering. I agree, but that is one of the things I enjoyed. It’s a song that never quite reaches the climax you think it’s heading for.
Just one last note, you singled out his voice for criticism. This confuses me. Since when does someone have to hit a note to sing it well? If that’s what constitutes good singing, well then I suppose X-Factor and whatnot are producing the finest singers we’ve ever heard. Preposterous of course, the quality of a singing voice is purely subjective. Personally I love the fragility to Warmsley’s voice.
That’s not to say there’s nothing to criticise with the album, but I thought I would try to even the balance maybe a little. We should be celebrating a passionate and unique album like this, even if it doesn’t meet our (perhaps unreasonable) expactations. Save your 32%’s for something more deserving.
Apart from my complete disagreement, good review!
October 14th, 2008 at 10:31 pm
with respect-
I don’t think you have to hit every note- in fact far from it- however, it feels like warmsley is trying to hit the notes but not quite getting there. But again, thats my personal opinion. I also felt like the vocal isnt as strong as on Warmsleys previous record.
As for pressure- yes the lyrics were a highlight of the album-i just felt that the delivery didnt do it justice.
perhaps 32 is a little low, but i certainly couldnt justify giving it a score the other side of 43%