James
(Mercury/Decca)
"Hey Ma / the boys in body bags / coming home in pieces," sings Tim Booth with a jaunty swagger on the title track of James' first album since 2001. The song begins with images of towers falling and encompasses the global turmoil of the early twentieth century. Sure, it's heavy handed, but James was never subtle: they grew quickly from strummy early songs that earned comparisons to fellow Mancunians the Smiths to grand pop anthems, and their frequent work with Brian Eno trumpeted their U2-like artistic ambitions. Hey Ma is full of stirring, insistent and catchy tunes, some soft and subtle ("I Wanna Go Home"), many broad and theatrical ("Of Monsters and Heroes and Men").
They wisely tone down their former keyboard swells that now sound dated, but otherwise, on Hey Ma, James sounds both happily familiar and newly revitalized, equally engaged with the past and the present.
Standout Tracks: "Waterfall," "I Wanna Go Home" STEVE KLINGE
