The shortcut/safe description used for any guitar band seems to be “they sound like Coldplay and Foals”. It seems somewhat lazy for the music press to tag Clock Opera with the same label, you need to open your ears and eke out all the intricacies on their labour of love debut album ‘Ways to Forget‘ (which was a long time in production).
Clock Opera join ranks with the likes of Duologue in that they produce layered, slightly brooding and maudlin but ultimately rousing songs. Like someone locked Guy Garvey and Hot Chip in a basement and injected them with a huge dose of heavy PMT (chose whether you think this is a positive or negative).
In 11th hour Guy Connelly seems to have thrown every little techno lick and trick, perhaps layering too many sounds into a track that may tug at the heartstrings if precedence was given to the woeful lyrics. A lesson that it’s sometimes what you choose to leave out and not cram in, something the likes of Radiohead do so very well, knowing when to expose fragile emotions instead of anthemic fodder. But the album has its soaring moments, opener Once & for All is a gem. As is Lesson No.7 (below) and The Lost Buoys.
I suspect the songs may float back out of your memory once you’ve given this album a listen, rather than imprint a heavy footprint on your heart but it’s worth a spin. Perhaps an album you skip to and fro between tracks and settle on a few you adore. Not a complete masterpiece but not shoddy by any means.
Ways to Forget is out now on Moshi Moshi / Island Records
For more info visit http://clockopera.com/