Some bands just won’t sit still. Like fidgety schoolboys who can’t choose between doodling on the exercise book or staring out the window, Noah and the Whale have made new album ‘Last Night On Earth‘, the ultimate daydream record. At times they might as well be scratching their favourite bands into the desktop, but when it gets some momentum, this music is reaching for the stars.
Let’s dial it back a bit, and kick off with the title, and what a title. ‘Last Night On Earth‘, as an album title, is hard to beat. It has an epic, ambitious quality to it, seeming to stop just short of calling itself ‘Dark Side of the Moon‘ or ‘A Farewell To Kings‘. It speaks of memories, adventurous romances, dreams, even regrets. The phrase is taken from the stirring bridge section of ‘L.I.F.E.G.O.E.S.O.N.’, the album’s lead single: ‘On my last night on earth, I won’t look to the sky/Just breathe in the air and blink in the light/On my last night on earth, I’ll pay a high price/To have no regrets and be done with my life.’
Moments like this lend ‘Last Night On Earth‘ a wistful, almost spiritual tone, and certain themes of storytelling emerge. Tracks like ‘Life Is Life‘ and ‘Waiting For My Chance To Come‘ are filled with the hope and excitement of starting a new life, tinged with guilty pangs of sorrow for the old world left behind.
Then a strange indulgence of nostalgia creeps in towards the middle of the album. Perhaps it fits with the concept of looking back as well as forward, but the tracks just seem too derivative. ‘Give It All Back‘ strikes the listener as Bryan Adams’ ‘Summer of ’69‘ in disguise. ‘Wild Thing‘ bears more than a passing resemblance to Lou Reed’s ‘Walk On The Wild Side‘, even down to Reed’s sly, understated vocal style.
It’s a little disappointing given that the album’s undisputed highlight, ‘Tonight’s The Kind Of Night‘, was born from a train journey spent listening to Tom Waits’ ‘Downtown Train‘ and a metric buttload of Bruce Springsteen. That Charlie Fink could bring the essence of such inspiring music into ‘Tonight’s The Kind Of Night‘ without merely spinning them off proves that there was no need for ‘Last Night On Earth‘ to sag in the middle like a damp dumpster mattress.
Some might make a case for ‘L.I.F.E.G.O.E.S.O.N.‘ riffing on the infamous ‘Lola‘, but beyond sharing the same key and tempo, the song’s only drawback is the spelling-things-out chorus that feels a tad out of place. Only a tad, mind. Hardly even a smidgeon.
After a killer opening three songs and the saggy middle section, Noah and the Whale finally hit us with ‘Paradise Stars‘. We’re drawn back into their world, lying in a lonely field, watching the night sky spin dazzling patterns in space. It segues beautifully into ‘Waiting For My Chance To Come‘, one of the triumphs of the band’s breezy new sound. The album comes to a close with ‘The Line and Old Joy‘, full of dark romance and a longing for happier times.
Noah and the Whale have come on leaps and bounds since ‘The First Days of Spring‘, a remarkable record in itself. This record’s worst moments are mere pitfalls; some not-entirely-thought-out tributes to their heroes. Hardly unforgivable when you count phenomenal songwriters like Springsteen, Waits and Reed among your heroes.
At its best though this music is nothing short of breathtaking. To bring up the Boss up again, it feels more than a little like the emotional swoops and dives of ‘Born To Run‘. They both tell those familiar stories, where under-dogs break free to make their own luck; songs about taking a chance on somebody; stepping out into the kind of nights where everything could change.
(Simon Moore)
