Nearly two years in the making since The Reads excellent debut album Stories From The Border was released, the long aching wait for new music has finally arrived with this, Lost At Sea, but has it been worth it? Well, in a word, yes. Building on their spaced out indie sound, The Reads have created what amounts to a widescreen version of a windswept epic. Think Pink Floyd's Division Bell crossed with early Elbow and you get the idea.
That description may put some people off but you shouldn't run just yet. A band of many surprises, The Reads deliver an album which barely raises the tempo above a heartbeat and deconstructs what we know as emotional indie by subsuming all the influences they have been exposed to. Their is the guitar sheen of a classic indie band, there is folk at every turn, there is electronica seeping through and on top there are stunning, heartfelt vocals.
As the mellow sound of 'Drowned' drifts in we are immediately thrown into a sort of other world where nothing is quite real. Almost dreamlike, it builds into a stately finish before stopping with the sound of children playing and birds tweeting. It's brave and compelling and then the title track strides in and knocks you for six with an opening verse which just begs to be sang at stadiums.
These are not lighter waving anthems though, these are more akin to the music Midlake may deliver on any given day and it shows that over the two years of making this album The Reads have developed a confidence beyond what went into their first album. This confidence is enough to make the folky 'Scarlet' swing with joy on what amounts to the albums high speed moment before we are thrown right back down with 'High Taid' and 'Haunted', songs which beg to be listened to carefully.
'Love or be Loved' is another surprise as a slight dance rhythm pulsates out behind the song and this one is destined to become a live favourite as they set astride the world of venues in search of like-minded souls. We are then treated to a further electronic excursion as guitarist/violinist Claire steps forward to sing a song. It's a sweet moment and acts as a super counterbalance to an emotional climax. A climax which includes the near masterpiece 'Shifting Sands'.
If ever there was a song missing from the later years of Pink Floyd then this is it. With its acoustic guitars giving way to a Gilmouresque solo and heartfelt yet subdued vocals expressing the pain we feel inside all of us, it's a genuine moment of joy and one that raises both tears of pain and pleasure.
See, that's how The Reads work. Not for them the bluster and urgency to get a hit single out. Instead they plow their own path and hope that in doing so people will come on board. Once you are on board there is no getting off and it begs the question why this band aren't huge. That's a question for another day though, for now treat yourself to this wonderful album then go and search out their first release too. You won't be disappointed.
