Hello everybody,
It has been quite a while since I took the time to put together a post. Maybe the inspiration was not there, maybe my “muse” was missing. Elbow announcing the upcoming release of their fifth proper studio album build a rocket boys is a hell of a way to get motivated again!
I have been saying for quite a while that Elbow could take over the spot as my favorite band from Echo and the Bunnymen depending on what their next album would be like. Echo put together the greatest opening four album string, in my humble opinion, in the history of music. Crocodiles, Heaven Up Here, Porcupine and “the greatest album ever made”, Ocean Rain, were and are unbelievable.
Elbow has an almost equally incredible four album run with Asleep in the Back, Cast of Thousands, Leaders of the Free World and their greatest triumph thus far, The Seldom Seen Kid. The Seldom Seen Kid was the 2008 Mercury Prize winner for Album of the Year and inspired an amazing live set at Abbey Road Studios January 17, 2009 with the BBC Concert Orchestra and the London-based chamber choir Chantage. That live recording was my top pick for Best Album of 2009.
This past Wednesday the band announced a release date of March 7, 2011 for build a rocket boys! and also announced they had a little surprise for their fans on Boxing Day. That just so happens to be today, the day after Christmas my friends.
I was ecstatic to receive an email today with a clip for the lead track on the album, “Lippy Kids“. This is a live version of the song recorded at Blueprint Studios and in typical Elbow fashion is a glorious, subtle, moving tune. Elbow has opened five straight albums now with a stunning opening track to immediately hook the listener.
Damnit. March 7 seems like an eternity right now …
Cheers!
Frank
Track listing for build a rocket boys (which frontman Guy Garvey “accidentally” let slip when the release date for the album was announced)
- Lippy Kids
- The Birds
- With Love
- Neat Little Rows
- Jesus Is A Rochdale Girl
- The Night Will Always Win
- High Ideals
- The River
- Open Arms
- The Birds (Reprise)
- Dear Friends
The Musings of Frank Gallardo 
“Lippy Kids” is a seriously sweet song, even if I kept mishearing the line “Build a rocket, boys!” as “Build a rocking horse!” No, “Build a rocking horse” doesn’t make a lot of sense, but it’s the kind of poetic, somewhat inscrutable image that Guy Garvey likes to go for, so it made sense.
I’ve listened to the song a lot. (For convenience’s sake, I stripped the audio track out of the video. Why load up a YouTube video when an mp3 is all I need?) As far as I’m concerned, March cannot come soon enough. 🙂