Over three years after the release of their full-length debut, The Noise Made by People,Broadcast have returned full force with a truly exceptional follow-up.While staying true to their moody, late '60s psychedelia-influencedcore sound, the band opens up further to make their retro-basedstylings something that is truly all their own. Haha Sound isboth more playful and more experimental than its successor, evidencedin the opening track, "Colour Me In." Trish Keenan's vocals are sweetand girlish, offsetting the ghostly machinations and audible squeaks inthe background. Her vocals, however, are more often haunting andmelodic such as on "Before We Begin," "Man Is Not a Bird," and "OminousCloud," while on "Pendulum," the first single from the record, Trish'svoice sounds slightly emotionally detached. On "Minim," they cascadelike a hypnotic waterfall, and she turns "Valerie" into a lullabye. Thelyrics are full of rich, abstract imagery—like "If green is chasing thehills over miles / If blue is pursuing the sky" on "Colour Me In;" and"Shake your earrings over my head / Lay down your dreams on my pillowbefore bed" from "Valerie"—that suits Broadcast's music well.Percussion is without doubt a centerpiece of Haha Sound.The band's drummer Steve Perkins shines. Throughout he helps ground thefey electronics and balance out the airy vocals. The combination ofthese three has its greatest success on the song "Lunch Hour Pops,"which is possibly also one of the best tracks the band has everrecorded. Other outstanding titles on the record which demostrate agood blend of all the band's strengths include "Man Is Not a Bird,""Before We Begin," and "Winter Now." These are dotted with a handful ofshort instrumentals like "Black Umbrellas" and "DistORSION."
The overall ambience of Haha Soundis sweeping and spaceous. Although the instrumentation and pruductionis tight, the result is not one of preciousness or overbearance. Allthe songs feel like they have room to breathe, without being soextraneous as to need 70+ minutes for an album. Instead it clocks in ata compact 45 minutes. Although I am typically hesistant to attachsuperlatives when describing an album, I nevertheless must admit thatBroadcast has released what is hands down one of the finest albums ofthe year. It is undoubtably a remarkable achievement for the humblelittle band from Birmingham.
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