Album Review: Frank Turner - Tape Deck Heart

After filling out his sound with a souped-up band in recent years, Frank Turner has returned to a more stripped back ethos on Tape Deck Heart. This is Turner putting the emphasis back on his words, rather than the sounds that are built up around them.

There are still louder moments, like the call to arms Four Simple Words that encourages listeners experiencing music on mobile devices to remember the phrase, “I want to dance” for when they're at shows. But then there are the quiet moments, shrouded in brutal honesty. Tell Tale Signs is heartbreaking in its description of a relationship where one partner's failure to change leads to its breakdown.

Turner is at his best when he's revealing a little piece of his soul, whether that involves singing about his love of music, or bringing to light the frailties and failures of the human condition in his own personal way. On the straightforward rocker Plain Sailing Weather Turner sings, “Give me one fine day of plain sailing weather and I can fuck up anything”.

But where some artists surround melancholy lyrics with sombre, dark tones, Turner has always sold the message that music equals catharsis and even when he's digging down deep into his soul he's still writing singalong choruses and giving fans the chance to take these songs and claim them as their own.

Like the gratifying Poetry Of The Deed, Tape Deck Heart works so well because it's personal. The more Turner concentrates on the experiences of his own life and those around him, the easier it is for the listeners to find some little nugget that they can relate to their own lives, giving these songs new meaning and life.