After some time away, Idlewild’s return could have been a much more bloated affair. Given their cult status and a back catalogue that, to some, peaked early doors, they would appear to be perfect candidates for the wearying trend of full album revivals. That ‘Everything Ever Written’ is their next move instead is deeply gratifying for anyone who’s followed their path from angular alt-rock kids to considered elder statesmen.
The record possesses moments of quiet grandeur that recall American English, owes a debt to Roddy Woomble’s recent turn as a solo troubadour and feeds off Rod Jones’ understated guitar melodies, while retaining Idlewild’s calling card, namely that their songs are both clever and approachable in equal measure.
Time is a factor throughout, but the six years since ‘Post Electric Blues’ are less of an issue than the general transience of the world around us. “Young, but only for a moment in time,” Woomble sings on Collect Yourself, while across the piece civilisations fall and are remade, regrets surface too close to the end and pieces don’t quite fit the jigsaw as they should. Time is presented as infinite and depressingly finite.
Musically, ‘Everything Ever Written’ is warm and beautifully presented. (Use It) If You Can Use It has a skip in its step as Jones plays off an organ lead and Come On Ghost erupts into an intensely hummable hook after a subtle Woomble pre-chorus, while Every Little Means Trust arrives wrapped in one of the most disarming melodies of the band’s career.
Don’t call it a comeback, because it isn’t really, rather savour the fact that Idlewild have rediscovered their own beat and are content to march at a more sedate pace than they were a couple of decades ago. Great songs are great songs, whether they leap out of the traps or burn bright after the addition of a key ingredient: time.
Idlewild Upcoming Tour Dates are as follows
Sat March 07 2015 - GLASGOW O2 ABC
Sun March 08 2015 - GLASGOW O2 ABC
Tue March 10 2015 - BIRMINGHAM Institute
Thu March 12 2015 - MANCHESTER Ritz
Fri March 13 2015 - LONDON Roundhouse
Fri March 20 2015 - BELFAST Limelight 2
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