Tom McRae
's second effort,
Just Like Blood
, doesn't venture into territory that far removed from his self-titled debut. It's rather unfortunate, because the album gets off to an invigorating start with its first two tracks.
"A Day Like Today"
feels like a mix of
David Byrne
's
world music
excursions and early
Peter Murphy
. Amid soaring strings and what sounds like a tribal xylophone,
McRae
sings passionately about loving someone to death.
"You Only Disappear"
benefits from slick phrasing, a minimalist piano, and deep bass notes. The song feels like one of the finer moments from
I Am Kloot
's self-titled sophomore album. After these two songs,
too often gets mired in overwrought lyrics, murky
ambient
effects, and uninteresting melodies. Too much of the album comes off like a
David Gray
or
Travis
throwaway. While
"Ghost of a Shark"
recalls
Ry Cooder
musically, and
"Overthrown"
bares a sonic resemblance to
Slowdive
,
's anguished lyrics and hushed, processed vocals prove to be the album's undoing. That's not to say that there isn't an audience for anguished songs, but songs like
"Karaoke Soul"
and
"Mermaid Blues"
offer up lyrics even more embarrassing than their titles.
perhaps best displays
's weakness. Without a doubt inspired by
Talk Talk
's minimalist albums, the song peaks too soon while
dabbles in flat and awkward images of "burning arrows (that) fall backwards." With perhaps just a few patches of humor or even a hint of a smile, these ten songs would be easier to stomach. That being said, fans of earnest artists like
the Devlins
, or
Damien Rice
will most likely appreciate the syrupy thickness of
's delivery and emotional nakedness. The nearest comparison would probably be
Ed Harcourt
. But where
Harcourt
often loses the plot in commercial-style
rock
bombast,
suffers from overblown high school quality metaphors and safe songwriting. If there were more moments like the two opening tracks, it would be easier to recommend
. ~ Tim DiGravina