While "New Brooms Sweep Clean", the lead track on the new album from The Black Watch lets us know we're in familiar seas, there are hints here that the wildly prolific John Andrew Frederick is stretching his sail and pointing towards new shores a bit on this one. The output is, as always, top, as they say, but it's nice to be given something new too.
With its hints of New Order, Pale Saints, and numerous other bands of that ilk, "Sorry So Far" really presses all the right buttons for me. The backing vocals from Lindsay Murray embellish the song as much as the guitar and keyboard do, and the whole thing feels like Frederick is placing a premium on mood here, and not just his usually astute lyrical observations. Elsewhere, "What's All This Then" has a sharp R.E.M.-in-1988-ring about it, a punched up guitar riff or two pushing this into the realm of what would have been a big college radio hit in another age. Even more broadly pitched is the neat "Almost Words", a cut that brings a drunken guitar chord that the young Kevin Shields would have murdered for to rub up against John's warm vocals, and all that set in motion atop synths that seem like they're from the future. It's a richly rewarding number, and as clear an indication as I've heard in ages that John Andrew Frederick and The Black Watch don't have to sacrifice volume (as in output) as they reach for new seasonings for the Black Watch blend.
As much as I think the term is overused beyond belief, I've got to say that this is a shoegaze album. While the title cut offers a taste of the urgency that may be coming on future Black Watch releases, The Morning Papers Have Given Us The Vapours finds John Andrew Frederick more concerned with nuance and mood than lyrical prowess. He's a fine writer, gifted even, but it's a significant progression here, and one which I found refreshing. Given that, this may well be the most stylistically pleasing Black Watch record in quite some time. Until he shifts gears again, or takes up a folkie phase -- I kid! -- let's delight in all the pleasures of this latest TBW offering.
The Morning Papers Have Given Us The Vapours by The Black Watch is out on Friday via Dell'Orso.