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In my opinion, there is a certain type of music that is destined to be featured on Radio 2. In much the same way that Scissor Sisters/Mika became the darlings of Jo Whiley and you can't go for more than 3 songs without hearing Bodyrockers's The Way You Move on Radio 1, some records or even artists have all of the hallmarks for the nation's most popular radio station. There's some quality to it; something that is appropriately adult or MOR, or at least has some kind of country edge to it. Its neither a good or a bad thing, it's just something that can be picked up. Predictably, from the opening of this review, American Music Club fall well within this.
“The Golden Age” is a slow, considered and moving experience. What is lacks in exciting moments of vitriol it makes up for with complex emotions and sensibilities that naturally suit the more mature listener. In many ways, it stands as a point of antithesis of all of the “like, worst thing everrr!” emo bands that have cropped up over the last few years. Given that My Chemical Romance have set themselves up to be the spokespeople for the masses of disaffected youth, American Music Club have a grasp that sometimes problems or feelings of alienation are private, personal and dark. Yes, some of the themes are consistent (as they are in all music) but the delivery couldn't be further removed.
One could image the recording of “The Golden Age” to have taken place in sepia, recorded by men with huge moustaches who have just worked out how to make new fangled, high fidelity recordings. The album does not sound retro, but merely that it has existed for a long time, separate from all musical trends and, to a certain extent, influences. This said, the album hardly cuts any new ground with what it does. Songs generally sit between three and a half and six minutes long and have a conventional verse/chorus/middle eight structure and tends to slip into a broad category of Americana while using simple guitar/voice/bass/keys/drums. Basically what REM have been doing for years. But even with this in mind, there are moments of delight that keep the album not just afloat, but steaming ahead. For all my cravings for avant-garde stylings and edgy production, its amazing just how satisfying a simply executed and basic album can be.
“The Golden Age” is an album that is better than the sum of its parts. There are no true standout tracks and, if listened to separately, they would almost certainly fall flat. But, taken as a whole piece of art, American Music Club have achieved something that should intrigue, delight and take you off to a place far away. This may turn some people off who demand something a little more relevant to their lives, but for listeners of a disposition of having a house, paying bills and being disenchanted by it all, then “The Golden Age” is guaranteed to please.