It's difficult to believe that The Clientele have only gotten around to releasing a full length album now, six years after they appeared on the Fierce Panda 7" compilation, Cry Me a Liver. Although the London-based trio have released a steady stream of 7" singles, EPs, and even a critically acclaimed singles compilation in 2000, The Violet Hour finds the band exploring a larger framework and expanding their sound. Overall, the production sounds more focused than their previous efforts, though it does retain much of the charming muddiness of some of their earliest releases such as "All the Dust and Glass."
 
The guitar work, for which The Clientele claims a signature sound, is also as warm and complex as ever, while the feather-soft percussion drifts along in the background. Aesthetically, the emphasis on time and minutiae is intact. Longtime fans of the band have no doubt noticed The Clientele's affinity for referring to seasons, days of the week, and times of the day in their lyrics. The Violet Hour continues in this tradition. "House on Fire," the second single from the album, certainly ranks among the best of the band's songs, and is a good example of the fullness The Clientele is maturing into. Their previous songs have generally clocked in at around two minutes each, but on this album, the group seem to be gently spreading their wings a bit more, stretching out the length of their newer songs. As a bonus, two videos are included on the disc in a beautifully arranged CD Rom track. The first is for an older, yet classic Clientele tune, "Reflections After Jane," and the second is for "House on Fire." One is tinted and the other is in black and white, but both are images of a suburban London or the band playing cards in a pub, filmed in a similar scratched patina style, slightly out of focus at times, and entirely in keeping with the heart of the band's sound. -
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