Dan Snaith makes an intriguing departure from the introspective warmth of his 2001 debut on Leaf, Start Breaking My Heart to bring us Up In Flames. Titled to reflect his opinion of the current state of electronica perhaps (if the press-release is anything to go by), Up In Flames wholeheartedly transports Snaith’s ‘indietronica’ firmly out of the bedroom, at least as far as the lounge room, where there is a little more room to shake one’s un-funky indie whiteboy ass.
The opener, “I’ve Lived On A Dirt Road All My Life” introduces Snaith’s new audio direction, immediately drawing comparisons to a more retrospective Spiritualised, complete with heavily chorused, reversed vocal pre delays, and jubilant, maniacal horn section workouts.
One important point to mention in such a case, (i.e. electronica star breaks free of his incessant noodling and purely instrumental tendencies to [gasp] dabble with more conventional lyrical based songs) is that there will always be an amount of cynicism toward an artist who makes such a large stylistic leap from their last audio work. This cynicism can cloud so much the way in which a new work is viewed, however Snaith has crafted an album’s worth of material that has the strength to override any doubts as to whether his new direction is merely fleeting.
Snaith’s maximalist approach to instrumentation and arrangement can often cause sensory overload, although this seems wholly to be his intention, paying homage somewhat to the ‘wall of sound’ technique of composition, which is best implemented when purely by accident.
One criticism could be that Snaith’s vocal delivery waivers too often between textural ooh and aahing rather than committing to solid vocal melody amongst these brash and densely layered arrangements.
At times you could almost mistake a lot of Up In Flames as some long lost outtakes from a 90s 4AD experimentalists His Name Is Alive session, especially on the well-received “Jacknuggeted.” There is an undeniable underlying homage to 60s psych rock heroes The Byrds, and The Beach Boys, however audio nods to My Bloody Valentine and Mouse On Mars prove that Snaith has the ability and ingenuity to combine the old with the new.
Refreshingly retrospective, Up In Flames is rough around all the right edges.
Up In Flames is out now on Leaf/Domino.
