Field Music - Commontime
8/10
Five albums in ten years is a reasonable output for any band, though the Brewis brothers have achieved this in addition to their extra-curricular collaborative and side projects, and have still found time to produce a film soundtrack and put out an album of covers. Plumb, their last 'proper' release got a Mercury Prize nomination three years ago (the year that Alt-J won with An Awesome Wave) and came really close to putting the hard-working Wearsiders onto the big musical map. Commontime continues their tradition of writing about the reality of the mundane, but takes it to another level with a maturity of lyricism and melody construction that reminds of the glory days of 10cc, whilst infusing a funkiness and pace that could have equally come from the hand of David Byrne or Beck. The opener The Noisy Days Are Over is a six minute opus to the reality of responsibility. I'm Glad rues on the carefree days of youth and Stay Awake ultimately becomes a confessional domestic love song. Together, the tracks on Commontime conspire to paint a picture that we constantly try to ignore, that time and responsibilities inevitably catch up with us all. This is their best album yet.
8/10
