Heart of Nowhere

Their search for large-scale anthems and keenness to replicate a formula that doesn’t come naturally to them leaves them sounding boxed in, and imbuing Heart of Nowhere with all the grace and flexibility of four concrete pillars.

It has its heart wide-open, and not to love it would only be mean-spirited.

Their fourth album continues in the vein of 2011's Last Night On Earth, divining its inspiration from cool, crisp '80s US new wave, "Every Breath You Take" bass lines, Brat Pack soundtracks and wistful songs about girls. [Jun 2013, p.76]

The ersatz '80s production, lyrical platitudes and soft focus atmospherics stray uncomfortably close to parody. [Jun 2013, p.85]

This band aren't about confrontation, and to those attuned, this is exactly their strength. [Jun 2013, p.109]

It's a record of rare precision; the kind that comes from figuring out exactly what you want. The kind that comes from being all grown up.

If much of this is catchy, however, you can’t help but miss the Noah And The Whale who could be emotionally devastating.

No one expects urgent, Darkness on the Edge of Town-style danger from a N&TW record: just breezy, bittersweet, hook-laden tunes, and they're offered in abundance here.

Fink still seems to be finding the confidence in his voice that when it’s pushed is truly wonderful, but most of time a little dreary and unconscious. That aside, this is a lovely little record for folk fans who like a Seventies scuff.

When Fink sings, “I think still after all these years, something still burns,” on the chorus, seven tracks in, we’re left feeling less like teens trapped on an island and more like parents who have beaten the odds and stayed together. Similar disruptions that take us away from “teenland” are the records’ main fault, though it’s largely successful as a sunny summer album.

This band has succeeded at writing an exceptional album that’s both intimate and full of pop-hook goodness, all without using over-the-top production techniques.

In a sense it presents itself as an evolutionary rather than revolutionary development, in this case one which takes its predecessor's penchant for the instant and injects an enormous dose of FM-friendly American power-pop from days of yore into the mix.

Their fourth is a satisfying blend of youth and experience, at its best when raw feelings and twenty20-something anxieties chafe against its smooth, midtempo rock.

While it's pleasantly effected for the most part, it's hard to get involved in someone else's nostalgia.