Magnetic Island is a place within the Great Barrier Reef for all you fact fans, it is also the name of Lisa Liu’s (Renminbi) new band but that is where any sense of similarity ends. Which is a shame, as if they had considered the openness and expanse of Australia they may have found a way to portray this album in a different light.
The album is based around a set of lyrics Lisa found she had written which focused on a more personal front. Taking these personal themes and matching them to a twin guitar attack and pounding drums along with soaring keyboards and the music should have flown. Instead it stays grounded much like a well-known Australian bird and never ever really sets off.
The first three tracks pass by without any sign of an opening promise and it is only when we get to ‘When You’re Finished’ that the music starts to liven up. Heavily in thrall to Goo era Sonic Youth Lisa Liu seems to overshadow the music with her vocals but you find yourself wanting her to just let go and yelp or something. For such a personal set of songs you find yourself wondering why she can’t inject a bit more passion into them.
Not that the album is bad, the guitar work is excellent reminding you of the glory days of Sonic Youth. What the album lacks is a strength in depth and a production which sets the songs free. The overall sound is claustrophobic and just when you think the guitars are ready to open up the songs finish. What could have been a widescreen epic is more akin to being enclosed in a room with pictures of vast landscapes on the walls. The element is there but oh so out of reach.
It is perhaps telling that the best song on the album is the instrumental ‘Whatever You Wanted’. A breathing space seems to have been found for the music and a mini post-rock epic is promised. The guitars chime together and we as a listener are allowed to go on the journey with them. Maybe this is something that the band could explore further by allowing the songs to find themselves and spread out a bit more.
Available now through Bandcamp
Posted by Martyn Coppack
