Sorry it’s been so long since my last post–been kinda busy with school, work, saving kitties–but I’m back! I just (finally) picked up South’s third album, Adventures In The Underground Journey To The Stars, released in 2006. I’ve been following this trio since 2002’s excellent debut Here On In, which split the difference between anthemic indie-flavored guitar-pop, folky excursions, and dubbed-out electronic interludes. It was a sprawling mess, but in the very best way. The follow-up, 2004’s With The Tides, scaled back the sprawl and found the band focusing on a much more coherent, widescreen pop sound that was both expertly executed and inspired. It was clearly influenced by the success of Coldplay’s A Rush of Blood to the Head, but had a charming insularity and modesty that that record lacked.
Adventures…, while certainly a charming album in its own right, is something of a disappointment because its most ambitious tracks swim within a sea of complacency. Along with ‘Shallow’ and ‘A Place In Displacement’, ‘You Are One’ marks an interesting step forward for the band, further distilling their popcraft within the context of post-post-punk. By piggybacking New Order’s more effortless, guitar-driven tracks, South has hit upon a winning formula consisting of sweet melodies, driving dance beats, and Joel Cadbury’s sinuous guitar lines. However, South doesn’t trade in mere imitation–they distinguish themselves with shifting time signatures and sonic textures, and a sincere-but-never-overblown emotiveness that makes many of their peers seem either robotic or pandering in comparison.
Unfortunately, the impact of the three aforementioned tracks is diminished by their incongruity with the rest of the album, which switches off the amps and delay pedals in favor of acoustic guitars and mandolins. This stylistic retreat is fine in and of itself, but should not have to compete with such markedly different songs. Here’s hoping that next time they give each of these song styles their proper due without resorting to the kind of schizophrenia that makes this album such a difficult listen.
