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Rating:
'90's never ends.
This was the motto of the Manic street preachers (or for friends, Manics) to create this pleasant surprise of 2007. Or at least, for me it was a great surprise, after the disappointment I felt listening to that "Lifeblood" (2004), excessively catchy and pop for Bradfield’s deep voice and my poor ears.
However, dear readers, let’s be clear, I have never been a fan of the Manics, sure I am a friend of theirs (from how I call them you’ll have surely understood!). I adored "Everything Must Go"(1996), I was intrigued by the beautiful "The Holy Bible" (1994) and even the previous albums like "Gold Against The Soul" (1993) and "Generation Terrorists" (1992) captured me although not excessively. In short, I believe these Welsh are "good stuff" but I don’t think they have been able to write absolute musical masterpieces. I think the same of this magnificent "Send Away The Tigers," the surprise of 2007, which in my view fits perfectly between the immense "Everything must go" and the extraordinarily gritty "The Holy Bible".
Rarely do we see radical changes in bands that infest their own sounds: enriching them, changing them, dirtying them, embellishing them. But here the Manics erase "Lifeblood" and "Know your Enemy" from their discography and have fun rediscovering what they had done before.
James Dean Bradfield & Co. in this "Send Away The Tigers" introduce elements that recall the times of the "void of riding a motorcycle" or the "sacred bible" that made them so famous ("Imperial Bodybags" and the single "Underdogs") or they revisit the Brit-Rock/Pop sounds of the post-disappearance of the poor-never-found Richey James ("Indian Summer" and "Autumnsong", which with "Winterlovers" make the trilogy of the seasons, ironic the Manics, cheap joke from me, I admit). (Re) Fishing with a well-sharpened hook a bit of that glam that belonged to the Queen more than two decades ago ("Send Away the tigers").
An album that provides a lot of energy but does not shun false steps ("Winterlovers"). There is also a duet with Nina from the Cardigans. Where even Nicky Wire tries to do the backing vocals but with poor results, in fact, I will say more, appearing a bit out of place given the powerful voice of the skilled Bradfield and the crystalline vocal performance of the Cardigan(s). Despite this, "Your love is not enough" turns out to be a great pop song that slightly recalls the atmosphere of "This is my truth, Tell me yours" (1998) with that music balancing between the rock roughness and honeyed pop sweetness.
In some songs, the string arrangement is enviable, almost on par with the best Oasis who, say what you will, but they hit the mark with melodies for winds and violins.
In short, we are in front of a beautiful album that injects energy and although it is very catchy, we will never see the Welsh throw their talent into the hands of commercialism, as many excellent bands have - lately - done ("Coldplay" and "Muse" above all) also because maybe Bradfield is obviously ugly (atypical for a rockstar, right?), but who am I to judge? And then he has a damn great voice (that often helps me sing along the Manics’ songs).
The final gem - of which I want to immediately inform you - is that after the final track, there is the now usual ghost track. Nowadays in the indie-rock world, if you don’t make at least one ghost track per album and make an album longer than 40 minutes, you are considered the last of the dumb. It is, however, the cover of "Working Class Hero" by the late Lennon, which I have never liked to be honest, I had never heard nor listened to the song, but oh! maybe Lennon’s one is bad but, as the Manics play it, I like it!
Having said this, I take my leave and express my precise rating for this album (the 4 stars are purely indicative): 7.1
Happy Listening and thank you for reading so far. See you next time.
Tracklist Lyrics Samples and Videos
02 Underdogs (02:49)
This one's for the freaks
For you're so beautiful
For all the devotion
Written in your soul
This one's for the freaks
For the lost and weak
For the butterflies and devotees
And the disciples of our destiny
And like the underdogs we are
Shining bright but now disappeared
And like the underdogs we are
Passing like some fading stars
Like some fading stars
This one's for the freaks
Beaten down and crushed
The shy and withdrawn
Or just out of touch
May you stay like freaks
May you make mistakes
May ya will never break
For underdogs revenge is sweet, revenge is sweet
And like the underdogs we are
Shining bright but now disappeared
And like the underdogs we are
Passing like some fading stars
Like some fading stars
This one's for the freaks
This one's for the freaks
People like you need to fuck
Need to fuck people like me
This one's for the freaks for the lost and weak
This one's for the freaks
03 Your Love Alone Is Not Enough (03:55)
Your love alone is not enough not enough not enough
When times get tough they get tough they get tough they get tough
Trade all your heroes in for ghosts in for ghosts in for ghosts
They're always the one's that love you most love you most love you most
Your love alone is not enough not enough not enough
It's what you felt it's what you said what you said what you said
You said the sky would fall on you fall on you fall on you
Through all the pain your eyes stayed Blue they stayed Blue Baby Blue
But your love alone won't save the world
You knew the secret of the universe
Despite it all you made it worse
It left you lonely it left you cursed
You stole the sun straight from my heart from my heart from heart
With no excuses just fell apart fell apart fell apart
No you won't make a mess of me mess of me mess of me
For you're as blind as a man can be man can be man can be
I could have seen for miles and miles
I could have made you feel alive
I could have placed us in exile
I could have written all your lines
I could have shown you how too cry
Your love alone
Is not enough
Your love alone
Is not enough
I could have shown you
Shown you how to cry
Your love alone
Is not enough
Your love alone
04 Indian Summer (03:54)
If God persists, persists in saying yes
I guess we'll have, we'll have to test ourselves
Maybe the Summer, will come and clear our minds
And find the impulse, to love the sunshine
I guess we'll have to test, until there's nothing left
We said the truth was fixed, it's lost without a trace
This crime is eternity
When time lost its certainty
The Indian Summer
Maybe this time
We'll kiss and we'll not shake hands
Indian Summer, still hurt and broken
And leave all this material belief
Remember the reasons
The reasons that made us be
I guess we'll have to test, what's darker than ourselves
We said the truth was fixed, it's lost without a trace
This crime is eternity
When time lost its certainty
The Indian Summer
I guess we'll have to test, until there's nothing left
We said the truth was fixed, it's lost without a trace
This crime is eternity
When time lost its certainty
The Indian Summer
The Indian Summer [x3]
06 Rendition (02:59)
Rendition, rendition, blame it on the coalition
All the emeralds that are missing, oh I wish we still had Jack Lemmon
Rendition, rendition I never knew the sky was a prison
It's a long hard revolution, oh good god I feel like a liberal
For tomorrow I will beg, steal and borrow
And at the moment I'm jumping at sorrow
I wish I knew what I did wrong
Can anybody hear the screaming of us? The screaming of us
In the long hard revolution
Rendition, rendition, blame it on the coalition
The CIA will stay invisible, oh good god I sound like a liberal
Rendition, rendition, I never knew the sky was a prison
It's a long hard revolution, oh good god I feel like a liberal
For tomorrow I will beg, steal and borrow
And at the moment I'm jumping at sorrow
I wish I knew what I did wrong
Can anybody hear the screaming of us? The screaming of us
In the long revolution
For tomorrow I will beg, steal and borrow
And at the moment I'm jumping at sorrow
I wish I knew what I did wrong
Can anybody hear the screaming of us? The screaming of us
In the long revolution
08 I'm Just a Patsy (03:11)
I am just a patsy
The Oswald in Lee Harvey
Made of my own misery
The footprints of history
I am just a patsy
I sell vague conspiracy
I'm slow and I'm easy
And I'm waiting for delivery
I'm just a patsy for your love
I need an angel from above
To a life depraved and lost
Inevitable like scars and dust
I'm just a patsy for your love
Even with the most control
Tied to fragments born and grown
All fucked up with nowhere to go
The best thing I ever saw
I am just a patsy
I sell vague conspiracy
I'm slow and I'm easy
And I'm waiting for delivery
I'm just a patsy for your love
I need an angel from above
To a life depraved and lost
Inevitable like scars and dust
I'm just a patsy for your love, love, love
A patsy for your love, love, love
I am just a patsy
I'm just a patsy for your love
I need an angel from above
To a life depraved and lost
Inevitable like scars and dust
I'm just a patsy for your love
09 Imperial Bodybags (03:30)
Imperial bodybags, coming home in dribs and drabs
Life is numbers, with doggy tags
Filled with holes and coming back
So come on up the sky?
Can't make out this line very well
Never had a chance to wave goodbye
Thrown away and unhappy
Driven by hypocracy
Nothing's finished it just fades away
Like a lover who has lost her faith
Nothing's finished it just fades away
Fades away
Imperial bodybags, Prom Queen disposible
Children wrapped in home-made flags
Imperial bodybags, Prom Queen disposible
Children wrapped in home-made flags
And here we love the kids
We're still human like everyone else
I have no idea what this line is at all
Stuck in school
Always willing to stick by the rules
Nothing's finished it just fades away
Like a lover who has lost her faith
Nothing's finished it just fades away
Fades away
Fades away
Imperial bodybags, Prom Queen disposible
Children wrapped in homemade flags
Imperial bodybags, Prom Queen disposible
Children wrapped in homemade flags
Imperial bodybags, Prom Queen disposible
Children wrapped in homemade flags
Imperial bodybags, Prom Queen disposible
Children wrapped in homemade flags
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Other reviews
By Alex1965
"'Send Away The Tigers' is undoubtedly a masterpiece, an album that attests to the health and well-being that rock of the 2000s still enjoys."
"Bradfield’s ‘falsetto’ literally breaks your heart."
By GrantNicholas
From the first notes of the beautiful title track, a perfect brit-rock number, you can tell that boredom will be a sensation rarely encountered through the remaining nine tracks.
"Your Love Alone Is Not Enough" presents itself as a truly devastating melodic impact guitar britpop piece.
