Frightened RabbitFull disclosure: this reviewer is a sucker for a Scottish accent in song. Idlewild, Biffy Clyro, We Were Promised Jetpacks – spread that good shit on. There's something about the Scots' vocal timbre that manages to capture the depth of human emotion, be it pain, longing or triumph, and on Pedestrian Verse Scott Hutchinson's poetry is arresting end to end.
Frightened Rabbit help maintain the northern quality with their fourth record, a release that deserves to be heard, absorbed and lost within. The release isn't built around mind-bending technicality, nor is it full of bold and provoking messages; the greatness here lies within basic structures, with slight nuances peppering simple yet magnificent tracks.
Following the plundering piano-heavy opener Acts Of Man, Backyard Skulls serves up a real nice bass line that drives the scratchy guitars, synth noises and Hutchinson's longing voice until it all rises into a triumphant climax. The increased energy that closes that track is rolled over to Holy, where Billy Kennedy's low-end chug combines with Gordon Skene's key work to create this energised, danceable tune that still manages to sound infinitely sad. The Woodpile is lurching and takes you to the streets of Selkirk while the guitar work stands as the hero on December's Traditions and the Modest Mouse-esque Dead Now. Much like good cooking, there is just basic ingredients here, but they're prepared and presented in such a magnificent way that over-complication would simply dilute the final product.
Intense without the volume, catchy minus the cheese, honest while still holding an air of mystery, Pedestrian Verse is an album for the everyman and woman looking for a soundtrack to find amazing.
