Keaneology Part 3 - Perfect Symmetry

Hello I now have the joy of talking with you about one of my personal favorites, Perfect Symmetry!!!!!

Well if you took my advice and have a listen to their past albums (Hopes & Fears/ Under The Iron Sea) you will find that Perfect Symmetry is a very different album. Perfect Symmetry though vastly different was to be expected from the band without ceasing of musical evolution. Sound wise you'd probably notice within the first 3 seconds that 'this isn't the old Keane'. For Perfect Symmetry Keane have taken an 80's influence, they have used synthesizers and the whole bombasticly funky groove line from the era.

For this album I presumed that you'll either love it or hate it, fair enough. But one point I'd like to make is that I was originally part of the later when I bought the album which after a single listen through had completely changed my mind. Either way you swing one thing you can never accuse Keane of is repetition or monotonicity in their music.

Perfect Symmetry kicks of with the more funky songs known as Spiralling, The Lovers Are Losing, Better Than This and You Haven't Told Me Anything. These songs might need a little getting used to for some fans of their older works mainly because they tend to be of a greater contrast to Hopes & Fears and Under The Iron Sea, however if fans do get over this they will find some very powerful songs that capture in essence what musical evolution is all about which is pushing yourselves beyond what you've ever done or dreamt of doing because musical evolution is never thoroughly planned, it just happens.

After You Haven't Told Me Anything Perfect Symmetry kicks off into the title track Perfect Symmetry. Perfect Symmetry itself is a song which places audiences through the eyes of the band members with a view of the meaninglessness and follies of life, though I cannot say I agree with what Perfect Symmetry represents I still do regard it as a great song. The album then rolls into a lower key with You Don't See Me which is an amazing ballad which beautifully grows from a simple synth pad to a warm and incredibly bright ballad which plays to Chaplin's vocal strengths.

Again and Again is a earnest song about the pointlessness of arguing about 'who did what' in a relationship and is highly emotional song that stirs those with emotions with a gigantic climax when Chaplin sustains the A5.

After abit of a relax with Playing Along and Pretend That You're Alone Perfect Symmetry swings into Black Burning Heart. Black Burning Heart is the only song I have no idea about, the themes confuse me but it nonetheless is majestic in both the context of lyrics (because Tim Rice-Oxely is unparalleled in his genre) and melody (because Chaplin is rather good at phrasing). This song doesn't go with the flow of the album but however lifts Perfect Symmetry to extraordinary heights for the smooth crescendo of Love Is The End. Love Is The End is such a fitting goodbye about the timeless necessity of love with is beautify constructed to climax with Chaplin highest note with falsetto, B5 which he so beautifully carries out.

In conclusion Perfect Symmetry though different is still brilliant, when I first heard this on a plane I remembered thinking to myself, "Dang they pulled it off again!". In many ways Perfect Symmetry has a very endearing quality that makes it extraordinary. I am giving it 9.5/10 obviously due to reason of morality but if I were different it's 10/10.


Listen To: Everything is brilliant apart from Pretend That Your Alone for obvious reasons!!!

Eskimo Joe - Black Fingernail, Red Wine

In my personal opinion one of the greatest attributes to Australian music is Eskimo Joe. If you're thinking 'I never knew the Inuit lived in Australia' then you probably aren't acquainted with the band. For those who have previously known Eskimo Joe you then know that they were formed in 1997 by Kavyen Temperley, Joel Quartermain Stuart MacLeod.

Eskimo Joe though successful in their own right are by no means a phenomenon or a high selling band, however when does chart performance ever dictate quality?

Something about Eskimo Joe just draws you towards in some sense a darkness. They recent production heavily emphasize darker themes such as death, war etc and their award winning release in 2006 Black Fingernails, Red Wine marks the genesis of this.

The album is an intricate, dark and grungy collection of songs, which though fairly dark shows glimmers of hope. Aesthetically speaking the album is ladled with rhythmic guitar rifftings, grungy lyrics, and weird and wonderful melodic line that on paper don't seem to make sense but just work somehow. Though first impressions of the music maybe be that of repetition and mono-tonality I promise that the music grows on you at least partially .

For me at least, the album is sooooo wonderfully dark, it somehow just reminds me of grunge itself(not musically speaking) the sound of the album somehow comes together in a very gloomy way. At times the album just seems to grip something dark within you(hope that doesn't sound too emo!). For me Black Fingernails, Red Wine a very gripping, engaging collection of music.

I think the main problem of the album is a lack of change, it seems that after the first few songs it just get unreasonable repetitive, I know I am contradicting myself by saying this but it does happen. Leaving the album somewhat incapacitated to evolve or change such as UTIS (which I have previously reviewed which changed it up abit).

In conclusion though having a brilliant start Black Fingernails, Red Wine finishes poorly in comparison to its glorious beginnings, though saying that by no means discount the validity of the piece because when Black Fingernails, Red Wine is good it's is really good.

Listen To: Comfort You, New York, Black Fingernails, Red Wine and Sarah

Stop For a Minute

Sup from beyond the grave ... it has been a while ............ well I just saw the new keane music video and look pretty awesome so here you go. The gerne busting song will feature on Keane's new EP which I am buying enjoy!!!