‘Colour It In’ is the debut album from the Brighton based indie band that is The Maccabees; the album was released through Polydor Records in May 2007 and consists of a total of thirteen tracks. The band plays its own brand of indie pop and for fans of such bands as The Cribs, The Pigeon Detectives, and Mystery Jets then The Maccabees music is well worth listening to. The bands vocals are an acquired taste and I’d therefore recommend seeking out the band’s music at a source such as YouTube or MySpace before committing to buying this album; the vocals will not be appreciated by all, the instrumental side of things on the other hand is absolutely magnificent and I’m sure that everyone that listens to this album will take plenty of enjoyment from The Maccabees instrumental element.
‘Good Old Bill’ gets the album off to a decent enough start, it’s quite a pleasant track to listen to and the band here makes excellent use of guitar sound. Always the instrumental side of things is excellent here and from start to finish with this album in fact there’s never a dull instrumental moment. The drumbeats are brilliant and the guitar work also is simply stunning in its execution; the instrumental side of things reminds me a little of Razorlight at times here, the vocals are very different however and the uniqueness of the bands vocals is probably The Maccabees main selling point. It’s the bands vocal use which makes the music stand out, the vocals are different to most and the music therefore grabs your attention; even if you don’t like the bands vocals then there’s no denying that they’re different. The vocals are often very central to the band’s sound, for me it is the instrumental side of things that is most impressive here however and most markedly the band’s terrific use of guitar.
‘About Your Dress’ and ‘Precious Time’ are two of the bands best efforts from this album and come fifth and sixth on the album respectively. ‘Precious Time’ has an absolutely excellent chorus which really makes the music stand out, the music is hugely striking and the track is therefore highly enjoyable to listen to. ‘About Your Dress’ is similarly blessed in the chorus department and once more the instrumental side of things is absolutely brilliant here. The drumbeats are brilliant whilst some super guitar sounds also here are achieved. The track is intelligently constructed and although the vocals are a little irritating in the verse; the chorus is very cleanly sung out and absolutely excellent to sing along to.
‘Toothpaste Kisses’ is by far the best track from the album and is utilised here as the albums closing number. It’s a supremely laid back track and really does work well here. The music is soothing to listen to and it truly is an excellent track to sit back and unwind to. It’s largely instrumental and this I feel is why I perceive it to be the best track of the album; I’m not a huge fan of lead singer Orlando Weeks vocal tone and less is therefore more here. When the instruments are left to do the talking the end result is absolutely exceptional here and always the track is supremely soothing to listen to and packed full of positivity. Even the vocals are a lot better to listen to here, they lack the whininess that they have with the majority of the other tracks present on this album and instead are quite cleanly and superbly sung out. The Maccabees has here saved the best until last and it’s therefore worth bearing this in mind when listening to ‘Colour It In’ for the first time.
‘Colour It In’ is a pretty decent debut from The Maccabees, for me it loses appeal due to the nature of the vocals however although I can appreciate what the band has done here for being different and not just copying the trends that others have set beforehand. It takes guts to try out something different and for The Maccabees it has all paid off and the band has managed a decent degree of commercial success. I can understand the appeal of The Maccabees and as I’ve already stated; ‘Toothpaste Kisses’ is an absolutely magnificent track and one which I thoroughly recommend listening to. Even if you don’t listen to any of the other tracks from this album then ‘Toothpaste Kisses’ is most definitely one to give a spin; you’ll surely not be disappointed with what you hear and the instrumental succulence of The Maccabees music will almost definitely highly impress you. This is not the greatest indie pop album ever to have been released, it’s still pretty good though and if you appreciate the vocals of Orlando Weeks then that will obviously be an added bonus; listening to this album and not liking his vocals is a little grating, the instrumental side of things always is excellent however and if you love a good instrumental display then I’d definitely consider giving this ‘Colour It In’ album a go.
‘Colour It In’ is not an album that will ever change your life; it’s still pretty fun to listen to though and if the vocals float your boat then this combined with the supreme nature of the instrumental side of things should provide for an absolutely exceptional overall listening experience.
Label: Polydor Records
Release Date: May 14th 2007
Rating:
UK based film graduate with a huge passion for music, sports and video games.