Soft Set - Only Lovers Left Alive

  by Chris Jones

published: 24 / 7 / 2004

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Review

Austin's the Soft Set have graced us with their first official release (their 2nd full length) on the UK based Becalmed record label.  Why a band from Texas ends up on a label from the UK might be a bit puzzling, but then again why are so many UK bands on US based Matinee?  Well the Soft Set do have much more in common with bands like the Clientele, Belle & Sebastian, or the Windmills than with any Texan band i've heard.  And even the photo on the album cover has me thinking England in the Fall, so maybe it does make sense. One thing that's not in question is the quality of the upbeat, jangly pop songs on this album.  The lightly strummed and plucked guitars on this album and the easy flow of the songs will have you head bobbing back and forth (or is it "up and down"?) in no time - a few bars into the opening song 'Stop Talking' was all it took for me.  The harmonica at the beginning of this song had me thinking How Many Beans Make Five, Biff Bang Pow, and B&S all at the same time.  Horns blow in some additional gentle tones throughout the album and there's a bit of a lazy, country feel to the songs too.  And while there may be several points of reference here, the Soft Set manage to bring things together in their own way. As on their earlier, self-released CD, the lyrics have a somewhat cynical/sarcastic sense of humour to them at times. The humor is a bit more subtle on this album and it never comes close to turning the songs into musical jokes.  in fact, if you aren't paying close attention to the lyrics you might not pick up on it at all.  Content wise the lyrics revolve around fairly standard indie-pop themes, but again, the Soft Set are able to cover familiar ground in their own way.  The lyrics are written from a personal/introspective view, but they don't come off as diary entries or melodramatic musings. The Soft Set showed much promise on their first album and on this release they really deliver the goods.  Musically and lyrically there is a naturalness and easiness to every song.  All the pieces fit together perfectly - the guitars, harmonica, horns, drums, vocals - making this an album that will be easy for any pop fan to embrace. The Lone Star state shines brightly thanks to the Soft Set.

Track Listing:-

1 Stop Talking
2 The Spread
3 Somewhere Far Away
4 Maplewood Avenue
5 No More Games
6 Christmas Lights
7 St. Francis
8 Disappear In Dreams
9 Brief Glimmer Of Hope
10 Like Glass
11 I Wanted To Say
12 Standing Around