ARTIST: Clinic
TITLE: Walking with Thee
YEAR RELEASED: 2002
CHART ACTION: #133 UK
SINGLES: Walking with Thee (#65 UK), Come into Our Room (#85 UK)
OTHER SONGS YOU MAY KNOW: Not over in these parts
LINEUP: Ade Blackburn, Brian Campbell, Jonathan Hartley, Carl Turney.
WHAT’S IT ALL ABOUT: UK indie band reins in some of their oddities, which leaves the final product more mainstream, relatively, and not as loud.
SOME WORDS, PHRASES AND CLAUSES ABOUT THIS RECORD: Starting with a creepy sound that sounds like if Coldplay were led by a villain in a horror thriller, Clinic’s second full album reveals itself to be a somewhat quieter, more tuneful record.
Sometimes it works – on the aforemented “Harmony”, “The Equaliser” and the title cut. But at times, the new direction (kinda new direction) leads them into a sonic lull. There’s nothing compelling about some of the tracks, the melodies are backing are repetitive but not tense.
It’s good, and the highlights are probably some of the best stuff Clinic’s done to that point. It’s just that by moving directions they take away some of the edge that made them interesting.
NOTES & MINUTIAE: Maybe some people in the US heard this, since it was nominated for a Grammy in 2003 for “Best Alternative Music Album” – losing to…Coldplay. Oh, Grammies.
IS THERE A DELUXE VERSION: No
GRADE: B: It’s not like the boring songs are bad, just not exciting. As a whole it’s a mixed bag, but the really good cuts are strong.