Artist: The Slow Show
Album: White Water
Bitrate: 232kbps avg
Quality: EAC Secure Mode / LAME 3.98.4 / -V0 / 44.100Khz
Label: Haldern Pop
Genre: Indie
Size: 78.20 megs
PlayTime: 0h 44min 43sec total
Rip Date: 2015-03-10
Store Date: 2015-03-06
Track List:
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01. Dresden 5:03
02. Long Way Home 3:50
03. Bloodline 5:09
04. Testing 3:53
05. Brother 4:02
06. Bad Day 3:36
07. Augustine 3:15
08. Paint You Like A Rose 3:30
09. Flowers To Burn 3:57
10. Lucky You, Lucky Me 4:13
11. God Only Knows 4:15
Release Notes:
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Some bands never seem to æfitÆ their names. Like the SPICE GIRLS were never that
æspicyÆ and IÆve never seen GUNS æNÆ ROSES with any guns or roses. Manchester
band, THE SLOW SHOW are very aptly named. Creating slow and powerful Americana
music really creating a show in their debut album White Water. THE SLOW SHOW
encapsulate and celebrate their namesake. The Manchester trio act as an oxymoron
of their home city, upholding their fame as a great music city but setting
themselves apart from their Manchester brothers. A very un-Manchester,
Manchester band that are largely successful around Europe, especially in big
cities such as Zurich and Dresden but are yet to fuel this success in their
homeland. White Water will definitely change that.
Each track tells a different story through the gentle yet powerful music they
create. White Water acts an encyclopedia of different genres ranging from,
Americana, folk to classical and even church choirs. The newcomers incorporate
all these different genres to create a catalogue of hits that shall be the sound
of 2015. The newcomers juxtapose brass sounds with choral vocals and describe
themselves as having a ædistinctly NorthernÆ sound. In the first track entitled
Dresden, one of the cities THE SLOW SHOW found themselves æunveiling allÆ in,
these choral vocals are paired gravelly vocals. It materialises a church-like
image in the listenerÆs imagination. The track creates an atmosphere of biblical
proportions, pun intended. It makes the listener feel the way the artist feels.
This is a valuable and powerful weapon an artist can have and the innovative
band use it throughout the record. Dresden combines many sound textures from
brass to string paired with vocals from lead vocalist, Robert Goodwin. Starting
the track with a monologue, Goodwin sounds vaguely Mancunian yet with a deep
oscillation separating himself from typical Manchester vocalists. Repeating
æThis is a breakdownÆ throughout Dresden, Goodwin juxtaposes this mantra with
steady, strong vocals.
The tracks that follow further the vocalist talents in an emotive style,
sometimes depressing and sometimes uplifting, the vocals lay between THE
NATIONAL and LOU REED. THE SLOW SHOW, however, do not mimic existing artists,
their sound is unique with familiar tone. Long Way Home the second track on
White Water, pastiches Reed. The track relies heavily on the vocals backed
slightly by minimal piano melody.
A personal favourite track is Bloodline, differing from the other tracks as it
begins with an upbeat guitar and melts into a brass band section. Bloodline
repeats æThis is the last time I callÆ and nestled at the beginning of the
album, this feels like a heartbroken empty threat. Wonderfully poetic and deeply
emotive, Bloodline showcases the relatively new bandÆs talents as musicians and
artists. And yes, these are just the three first songs on the album. The quality
continues. Each track, to me, is a highlight. The piano-driven epicness of the
bittersweet Brother, the string-drunken Bad Day that sees Goodwin sounding like
an old bar singer whoÆs about to drown his sorrows in another glass of Whiskey.
ItÆs a voice that crawls beneath the listenerÆs skin. Even in a more uplifting
piece like Flowers To Burn. From start to finish û the Mancunians materialise
their own story and create an anthology of tales on White Water. ItÆs impressive
first statement from a band that has just started to reveal themselves to the
world. This show will go onà slowly but not less entertaining.