Circa Waves are an Indie Pop/Rock outfit from Liverpool.
Their debut record ‘Young Chasers’ was the soundtrack of the summer of 2015
when it was released with danceable tunes featuring choruses with earworm
levels of catchiness and lyrics that youngsters could easily relate to. It was
a solid debut that garnered attention and fans, myself included. It may have
not been very ambitious but it was effective and successfully conveyed the
feeling and vibe the band was going for. At times it sounded like a compilation
of all the biggest tracks you would hear at U.K. festivals. With this in mind,
I had a keen interest in their new record ‘Different Creatures’.
As evidenced by the album title, things have changed for the
four Liverpudlians. This is an album that eschews the good vibes and summer-y
feel of its predecessor in favour of a grittier, darker tone throughout that is
reminiscent of post-punk revival ensemble Editors. Liverpool has a history of
their bands changing their sound, one of which resulted in some of the greatest
music ever being produced (I’ll let you figure that one out). Sadly this new
musical direction is like taking the wrong exit on a motorway, annoying and a
waste of time. It reminds me of when Foals ditched their preference for math
rock and quirky rhythm structures in favour of a heavier sound; resulting in
them becoming bombastic alt-rock headliners; but Circa Waves have neither the
high-level musical creativity or engaging, esoteric lyrics of Yannis and
company to pull it off. Instead it just ends up being a derivative album that
sounds like a relic from a bygone era.
There are some bright lights on this record though.
Ironically the title track ‘Different Creatures’ sounds like a leftover track
from their debut that has been retooled for this new release and it reminded me
of why I’m a fan of this band, which is all the more infuriating as the rest of
the album doesn’t keep up. In a time where Indie Rock is losing listeners to
more daring, experimental artists from other genres; especially in the U.K.;
this uninspiring, forgettable record sadly does nothing to help the cause.