ALBUM REVIEW: In The Pocket Of Big Sad – Mumbles
After four years of writing and recording, Mancunian trio MUMBLES have finally put out their debut album In The Pocket Of Big Sad. The album itself is meant to act as a reflection on trying to live in a world full of negativity and dark moments, an accurate summary according to the band would be what would happen if James Acaster was to front an emo band.
Yet even then, that comparison only scratches the surface, with the chaotic combinations of genres from noise rock to emo to jazz, creating something where you never know what’s to come next. It might be disorientating on first listen, but you learn to embrace the madness. From the moment things open with How Do Happy, the listener is immediately greeted by chaotic noises that leave you stunned in the first few moments, yet you soon come to accept it. And even though you might not know what’s going on, you can’t help but smile to yourself.
There’s no set pattern or expectations with MUMBLES, they just do whatever they feel like doing. It might not make sense, it might be overstimulating, but it easy to appreciate their craft in what they do. Whether it’s the chaotic guitar riffs in JD Sports that is one moment rock, one moment country, and then the next moment distorted noise rock, the almost nonsensical lyrics of Poached Eggs, Chilli Flakes, or the minute of pure chaos in Skejbyparken 2, st, you find yourself eager to hear more.
That’s not to say there aren’t more emotional, serious sounding moments. It’s an impressive skill when an artist can one moment leave you bewildered and then in the next have you pondering the meaning of life and appreciating the small things. For MUMBLES, there are two tracks that capture the latter in such a beautiful way. Everything Just Sprawls opens with guitar strumming that has you feeling emotional as it somehow conveys the thoughts and feelings when one thinks of the meaning of life, with the swelling noises seeming to represent the overwhelming thoughts as they hit you.
The other track is the 20-minute (!) Talking To Plants that constantly switches between chaotic, alternative rock and smooth jazz. At first you might wonder where this is all leading to but then we get to the lyrics that talk about the feeling of being scared yet being thankful for being alive. And then it hits you that the whole point of this record is to convey the human experience. You never know how it might end up, you might feel a loss of control, yet the chaos can be beautiful and it’s ok to just exist. We only wish they had ended the album with this song instead of the 30-second Stop To Be.
Rating: 7/10
In The Pocket Of Big Sad is out now via Divine Schism.
Like MUMBLES on Facebook.