Photo:
Stereophonics last album was released in 2009, their last tour in 2010 - so their new offering ‘Graffiti on a train’ has been a long time coming.
The opening track ‘We Share The Same Sun’ is the perfect introduction to the album, with a dark tone and musing lyrics. Title track ‘Graffiti On A Train’ is a reminder of the intensity and power behind Kelly Jones voice. ‘Take me’ at first is unsettling, but it proves itself to be a slow burner which transcends into a powerful track. The tempo is upped for the first and only time on ‘Catacombs’, however ‘Indian summer’ is fairly upbeat in tone.
‘Roll The Dice’ and ‘Violins And Tambourines’ are extremely similar, the use of a big band lends these songs a cinematic feel, and neither would be out of place on a James Bond movie soundtrack. ‘Been Caught Cheating’ takes on a classic rhythm and blues feel with a sombre tone. Returning to the cinematic feel of previous songs for ‘In A Moment’; although this song would be more suited to closing credits of a movie. Final track ‘No one’s perfect’ is a slow burner of a track, which is a fitting album closer.
The album as a whole is a solid collection of melancholy musings, no doubt influenced, either conscious or not, by the death of drummer Stuart Cable in 2010. There may be no stand out anthems, which Stereophonics have been known to produce well, but that doesn’t take away from the power of many of the tracks. The sound is darker and mature, with powerful lyrics, but lacks a definitive sound, lurching from blues to elegant big band fuelled tracks, to classic guitar songs. However, despite the differing sounds, there is a fluidity running through, in part due to Kelly’s distinctive voice.
