ARTiST: The Joy Formidable
ALBUM: The Big Roar
BiTRATE: 211kbps avg
QUALiTY: EAC Secure Mode / LAME 3.97 Final / -V2 --vbr-new / 44.100Khz
LABEL: Atlantic
GENRE: Rock
SiZE: 79.79 megs
PLAYTiME: 0h 49min 53sec total
RiP DATE: 2011-02-25
STORE DATE: 2011-02-25
Track List:
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01. The Everchanging Spectrum Of A 7:44
Lie
02. The Magnifying Glass 2:19
03. I Don't Want To See You Like 4:18
This
04. Austere 3:30
05. A Heavy Abacus 3:40
06. Whirring 6:47
07. Buoy 4:51
08. (Maruyama) 1:46
09. Cradle 2:46
10. Llaw = Wall 3:44
11. Chapter 2 3:08
12. The Greatest Light Is The 5:20
Greatest Shade
Release Notes:
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Welsh trio The Joy Formidable have been shaping this debut album for years.
Current single Austere came out in its original form way back in 2008, and three
other songs on The Big Roar have been released in the intervening years. If you
want a model for careful, gradual career building, look no further than this
lot.
While long-standing fans must be weary from all that waiting, it has proved a
wise move for the band, enabling them to tour around the world û using their own
funds û and gracefully step up from support slots to headline act. The live show
was honed; new songs were written; old songs were perfected. And now the debut
album is ready to send them stellar.
The Big Roar is huge: a roller-coaster of an album driven on by urgent,
accelerating grunge riffs and punchy pop melodies. The Joy FormidableÆs template
is simple. They create a basic melody that Ritzy Bryan sings with ethereal
majesty, and build it upwards into an irresistible, molten-lava crescendo. As
with Muse, itÆs almost unthinkable that this band only has three members.
Well aware of their limitations as individuals, they work hard on this debut
album to expand upon them, making the sum greater than the parts. Older songs
are subtly remixed and extended û Whirring now has an almighty, hair-raising
coda; Cradle has a rich new sheen û and the fresh songs bring changes in
attitude and tone. On Llaw = Wall, Ritzy steps aside from the microphone so her
bandmate Rhydian Dafydd can have a turn; Buoy starts like an eerie xx track and
doesnÆt get much friendlier as it mushrooms upwards and outwards. Indeed, the
second half of The Big Roar is, at times, a chilly, disconcerting listen.
This albumÆs long gestation period brings some flabbiness too as The Joy
Formidable try to add depth: the manÆs screams during the intro; the æroarÆ at
the end of Austere; the overlong opening track; the Maruyama interlude. Some
pruning could have tightened all this up, especially as the bandÆs songs speak
volumes for themselves. Nevertheless, The Big Roar is a powerful signal of
intent and a fantastic debut.