We were all expecting so much more.
The Fratellis discography has taken a dip with their newly released “Eyes Wide, Tongue Tied.” After attempting to record the album in January 2014, the band threw a white flag and asked producer Tony Hoffer, who has previously produced records for Depeche Mode, M83 and Beck, to assist in their efforts.
Unfortunately, even Hoffer’s track record couldn’t save this doomed fourth effort by the Fratellis.
On “Eyes Wide, Tongue Tied” it sounds like the Glaswegian rockabilly-punk connoisseurs forgot how to write appealing music. The album is messy and takes wrong turn after wrong turn.
After a festival appearance in 2009, the Fratellis, comprised of John Lawler, Barry Wallace and Gordon McRory, took an indefinite hiatus to pursue other projects. The band’s third album—and first since 2009—“We Need Medicine” was a growth album, which caused a surge of optimism to run through Fratellis fans, who anticipated something great for the fourth album.
But “Eyes Wide, Tongue Tied” is not what the fans were looking for.
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There is a smidge of hope with the introductory, piano-driven ballad “Me and the Devil,” which was released for free by the band back in June.
“I’ll get nothing from the blood and the wine,” croons lead vocalist and guitarist John Lawler aka Jon Fratellis. “I’m gonna sell this soul of mine, I’m gonna sell this soul of mine.”
More hope that the album is taking off is felt with the second track, the poppy, guitar-propelled folk-rock tune “Imposters.” But the next two songs drown in a sea of generic chord progressions and cliché lyrics.
“Baby Don’t Lie to Me” and “Desperate Guy” are trying very hard to sound like classic, catchy love songs. Both are watered down Fratellis with boring, noisy tones that almost force the listener to stop listening to the album.
But Hoffer saves the Fratellis again with the groovy, yell-induced “Thief” that reminds us of early, memorable Fratellis. The next track “Dogtown” gets our heads nodding, a tune that sounds much like a slower version of “Chelsea Dagger.”
“Take my eyes as a prize for my devotion,” Lawler pleads in “Dogtown.”
Other savory songs include “Too Much Wine,” “Down the Road and Back Again” and the album’s highlight track “Slow.”
The sentimental, aching tones of “Slow” are a refreshing take on early Fratellis. The mid-album song does not save the album from sinking but it provides a life vest for those who are still listening.
“I lost my heart when my back was turned,” Lawler sings. “If you got to leave me baby won’t you do it slow.”
The Fratellis have all of the tools, but their fourth album sounds like they lack direction. But the messy aesthetic and random, hidden gems put this album in the garage sale box.
TheFratellis
“Eyes Wide, Tongue Tied”
Cooking Vinyl
Released August 21, 2015
2 stars out of 5