Beta Band – Heroes to Zeros
So then, the new Beta Band album.
Six years ago, they were one of the most
exciting bands around. Their first three EPs were wondrous creations, spanning
any number of genres from pop to Krautrock, hiphop and chill-out. It all
sounded wonderful in the increasingly commercialised scene that followed the
death-knell of Britpop.
And then it all went wrong. 1999’s eponymous
debut was slated by the band, but treated rather more kindly by the critics.
It was a mess, but a very interesting one - effectively a series of musical
soundscapes and was a very brave step. It was a shame that the band never had
the courage to back it up with support or, perhaps, a slightly more structured
sound. Two years later and we got ‘Hot Shots II’. Again, it wasn't a particularly easy
listening, but there are some excellent moments on there. It takes a fair bit
of work on the listener’s part, and I must confess that I’ve been rather lazy
in that retrospect, but it is worthwhile.
And then nothing for three years. Until now, of
course. So what is ‘Heroes to Zeros’ like?
It kicks in with rather more panache than
earlier efforts. ‘Assessment’ takes advantage of a full rock backing, coupled
with a more traditional Beta Band-style melody and, of course, their intrinsic
vocal style. It’s quite a powerful opener, but it doggedly refuses to go
anywhere, and the melody swiftly becomes quite nagging, and not in a good way.
A swift turn around at the three-minute mark promises much more, however and
the tempo increases until the track reaches the heights of a full-on rock jam
that sounds much more ‘end of album’ than ‘start of album’. However engaging
the change in style may be, this soon loses its charm too.
‘Space’ sounds like ‘Gracelands’ era Paul Simon
experimenting with sequencers and synthesisers. It’s a hollow sounding track
that features some good noises, but little in the way of substance or
enjoyment. It, too, sticks around far too long and might function better on an
ambient album than on an album that is supposed to be so much more.
‘Lion Thief’ begins with some interesting
acoustic finger-picking and more interesting lyrics than have been displayed
thus far. It all goes rather down-beat quite quickly, promising much more, but
swiftly reverts to its earlier style which, as with the previous tracks,
swiftly begins to nag.
‘Easy’ kicks in with a more interesting
‘squelchy’ sound. It bounces along to a complex beat before falling back to a
simple acoustic guitar and harmonica backing. The track is more engaging than
the previous ones, sounding generally quite exciting and has more power to draw
the listener in than the earlier offerings. Perversely, it’s also the shortest
thus far.
‘Wonderful’ starts off like the Beta Band of
yore, retaining a chilled out vibe with some beautiful vocals and soothing
guitar parts. A supposedly ‘epic’ middle section, however, fails to engage,
before falling back to the earlier sound of the track, which again, sadly, far
outstays its welcome.
Strings punctate the start of ‘Troubles’ which
promises much by again reverting to an older Beta Band sound, but again fails
to deliver anything too exciting or mould breaking.
‘Out-side’ kicks in with aggression (and barking
dogs) with the usual Beta Band style vocals sounding quite inappropriate in
such an environment. Something punchy might have been required here, and the
vocals sadly fail to engage. The music, however, is a shining beacon of
excitement compared to the rest of the album. A chilled out, but well
constructed ending, succeeds in highlighting the song further.
‘Space Beatle’ has such a wonderful title, and
an interesting downbeat beginning. The vocals work better here, and one feels
less smothered in the production than before. Once it kicks in properly, it
does so in quite a beautiful way, with the refrain ‘I love you to pieces’
sounding particularly wonderful in context. The second time it deviates from
the verse, it does so with even more beauty than before, even when coupled with
with machine-gun drum samples. Its not danceable, but it does refrain from
being boring or from smothering the listener - and it is a genuinely good
track.
‘Rhododendron’ begins with some actual chimes (rather than samples) and another more laid back approach, similar of the last track. The chimes sound amateurish, but work wonderfully well in context. The church-organ style chord changes also engage the listener in what is a brief, but beautiful track. Possibly the best thing on the album.
‘Liquid Bird’ is another great title and charges
in with a disjointed and effects-laden rock style similar to Brave Captain’s
‘Better Living Through Reckless Experimentation.’ Again, the vocals aren’t
entirely suitable, although the lyrics are well worth listening to. Despite a
couple of interesting turnarounds however, this track also begins to outstay
its welcome through not being exciting or interesting enough to retain
attention.
‘Simple’ starts off as just that, but loses its
way despite some lovely sounding passages. A beautiful string sample at the
end, surprisingly reminiscent of Stealth Munchkin’s ‘Melody is Emotion’ briefly
re-engages the listener.
‘Pure For’ couples a harmonica with the usual
Beta Band ambience to less than satisfying appeal. The song gains some promise
towards the end, before, surprisingly, ending rather quickly. One would expect
the final track on a Beta Band album to be quite epic, if not anthemic. It is
curious that it is not.
So, overall, it’s a bit of a mess, frankly. I
can’t see myself listening to this too often in the future. It doesn’t have
anything that would work too well as a single either – the best tracks are
either too odd or too short. Once again, they’ve totally failed to live up to
the standard set by their debut, and thus they join Oasis, Grandaddy, Belle and
Sebastian and so many others in the great “Yeah, it’s ok I guess, but I really
preferred the earlier stuff” debate.
Stephen Bray.