There are only a handful of good double albums, afterall, it's a hard art to master. Instead of showing the creative output that simply couldn't be contained on one disc; it can normally go on for too long. Songs that should have been relegated to B-Sides or, not released at all, are suddenly thrown in the spotlight and the record suffers for it.
So where does Biffy Clyro fit into all this? They're one of the only bands in the 21st Century that still releases b-sides (to the point that Puzzle and Only Revolutions had counter-part b-side albums), they're one of the bands that said b-sides are any good and, most importantly, they've somehow eschewed the path of evolution and become more successful by becoming more mainstream in an industry that tries to reward creativeness and not turning into a run-of-the-mill band.
Ok, it's not strictly unusual, but Biffy Clyro, in their older days, were one of the most enjoyably complex rock bands out there. Multiple movements, strange time-signatures, chord-progression that shouldn't have worked, but did (did you guess I'm utilising all my music terminology here?).
Then they went a tad more refined with Puzzle and have stayed a steadier course ever since. Has it worked? You betcha! Whilst Puzzle was a tad too safe with some great singles; it's follow-up Only Revolutions is hands down one of the best rock albums of the last decade.
It upped the stakes of hit singles by having six, it's album-only tracks where all very good, like all Biffy Clyro albums; it's a lyrical masterpiece given an extra bonus with Simon Neil's vocals and overall, it made the band one whose success is thoroughly deserved.
But that was four years ago and things can change in the blink of an eye. They've returned with an aforementioned double album (and single version for those who are terrified at the prospect of eighty minutes of music) which begs the question (and the reason of this review)...
Is it any good?
(and please note, this is a review of the double album version)
The first half; the strangely (but very Simon Neil) titled The Sand at the Core of Our Bones starts in the strangest of places; it has the most simple yet lovely synthesiser chords I've heard for the past two decades.
Ok, it's very U2 and it'd sit right at home with anything from the seventies and eighties, but I really like opener Different People. It starts off as an almost triumphant call to go home before, nearly half way, it morphs into your standard, modern Biffy; refined and easy on the ears.
In fact, that's the easiest way to describe The Sand at the Core of Our Bones. Out of the two discs of music; although it's the safest, it's also the most accessible. It starts of huge and bombastic with Different People, following that is lead single Black Chandelier; a pop-rock ballad eerrily similar to Many of Horror but without the horrible X-Factor aftertaste it's predecessor unexpectedly gained.
After that; the potential hits keep on coming. The Joke's On Us is the closest the album comes to sounding like Blackened Sky-Infinity Land; fast with a return of changing time-signatures. Similar to that is A Girl and His Cat; a blitzing guitar opener with unpredictable chord-changes, thick bassline and simple but effective drumming.
By far; the tracks that stick out the most for the obvious change in direction is the surprisingly anthem-esq Biblical. Verses wise; it's sounds like The Police (or simply; Every Breath You Take) but the chorus changes the song dramatically with layers of guitars and leading synths transforming the sound to be something akin to electronica or that pesky subject of dubstep.
Another track with subtle marks of evolutions is The Fog. Despite it not being the album's longest track, it feels like it. It's three minutes of intentionally slow, brooding build-up before a final minute where the music crashes together for an outro. It's...ok..ish. It's certainly not a direction that band should take but it's something new, some added menace to the otherwise loud and proud album.
The first disc ends on a rather sombre note with The Thaw. In some, bizarre way, it's similar to Mountains, but the timing is slower, the bridge emphasises on the strings and piano than guitar, but it works, really well and it's a suitable climax for The Sand at the Core of Our Bones.
So, if The Sand at the Core of Our Bones is the more accessible of the two, this means the second disc; The Land at the End of Our Toes is the more rewarding, difficult and inaccessible album? Well yeah, but did you think you'd hear a Biffy Clyro song with a mariachi band?
No?
So yeah; Spanish Radio takes everything you thought you knew and expected from the band and gives you a quite literal double dose of Scottish and Mexican tropes in one strange mix. It kinda works although Neil's established vocals stick out like a sore thumb on music so stereotypical, it's almost bland.
Better executed tropes is the bagpipe infused, stompy opener Stingin' Belle. You've no doubt already heard it but it's a fantastic song; loud guitars, a fast beat and perfect sing-a-long chorus, perfect to open up the album.
Song offering more creative expansion include Skylight; somewhat to The Fog and Biblical for it's electronic influence, it's surprisingly atmospheric and works well as, not only a breather for the more rockier Modern Magic Formula and Victory Over the Sun, but as something The Fog should have tried to emulate on the disc before.
What's strange is Skylight is a holdover from previous albums and has now only fount relevance here. Stranger still is Pocket finds itself in the same boat, although it's absence from Only Revolutions can be put down to the fact it doesn't just sound like Mountains, but Mountains did a better job. Harmless pop-rock but nothing out of the ordinary.
As mentioned before, the songs that sound similar to Biffy's back catalogue is Modern Magic Formula; a bass heavy rock number with some awesome vocal hooks which could have been thrown on Puzzle without a second glance and Victory Over the Sun; which implements more string sections and a fantastic chorus that again, wouldn't be out of place on Only Revolutions.
The album ends with Picture a Knife Fight; a song seemingly crafted for the inevitable stadium gigs, with a big chorus and outro that, in retrospect, offers the reasoning behind getting the double album rather than the abridged single disc.
Although it's not quite easy to hear, as mentioned before, The Sand at the Core of Our Bones is the more accessible of the two; radio hits a plenty with more crowd pleasing traits. The Land at the End of Our Toes in the meanwhile, is where more of the creative expansion lies, where, arguably, the more interesting stuff is present.
It's also only after a few good listens that theme's begin to emerge with Neil's lyrics. Disc One constantly looks at introspection, at how things are going and ultimately, how bad things have become. Disc Two however, is more reflection on good moments and how ultimately, it's not so much returning to normality, as it is triumphing over a huge obstacle and emerging as a better person (heck, reading interviews with the band clearly shows the mindset going into Opposites and it does show here, for all too hear).
For all obvious nods to heart's on sleeves and lingering issues, Opposites is good, very good even. For those who find Biffy's best material was back in the old days, before Warner, there's bound to be something spread across the two discs for you to enjoy and remember the more simpler days when the band was more complicated.
For me; as someone who proudly says Only Revolutions is my favourite Biffy album (with The Vertigo of Bliss in close second), although Opposites it's just as refined as their more recent albums, the occasional miss, the odd inclusion at some-points causes Opposites to suffer as a package.
It's not terrible by any stretch of the imagination, but it's just missing something that would turn this near-great collection of songs, into something towards perfection.
8/10
H
@Retcon_Nation
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