Josh Franceschi will happily tell you that, it's been three long years since his band, YOU ME AT SIX released "Cavalier Youth"; a stunning album full of arena sized alt.pop indie rock anthems that really established the Surrey based five-piece as one of the UK's finest in a generation. The album shot straight to number 1 in the charts and it was rightfully deserved. Their finest work to date, it showed they had it in them to take that next step and become world beaters, teasing at an incredibly exciting future. Today is that future, three years later, and we find them releasing the much anticipated follow up; "Night People". Have they gone all Carpe Noctem, or is it way past their bed time? Let's find out...
We open up with the title-track and it's a slow, groove-laden, almost sultry number, it's a little bluesy with incorporated gang-vocals and with it's pretty uniform approach throughout it's really quite monotonous overall, it works as a warm up just fine but being the albums title track, it raises a few red flags...luckily however, "Plus One" bursts into life immediately afterward and this is more like it. At just over two and a half minutes it's almost a sucker punch; a short dose of more attitude filled rock 'n' roll bringing the album to life, and despite it's brief run-time it builds to an entertaining crescendo, leaving the listener wanting more, and they do get SOME..."Swear" is a simplistically bouncy alt.rock track, quite the foot tapper and a genuinely catchy chorus makes this another enjoyable listen, though not as intense as the aforementioned, before "Can't Hold Back", another album highlight, brings the funk by the bucket load. Here though we have an issue, as good as this is, it's as good as it gets...
"Heavy Soul" and especially "Take On The World" are far softer offerings and while this is in no way a negative (every album needs light and shade) they feel somewhat lacklustre. The latter sounds like it was made in a lab using COLDPLAY and ONE DIRECTION DNA...it's the Indominus Rex (in principle) of ballads...just, no. Likewise, "Spell It Out" and closing track "Give" offer nothing particularly special. Franceschi has a lovely vocal don't get me wrong, there's a sweetness to his voice and he is suited to a pop-fuelled croon, and musically the gentle tracks aren't unpleasant by any means, and there are moments of hope, but this could be so much more. "Night People"? More specifically, Sunday night, when there's nothing on TV, nowhere to go and nothing to to. Compared to "Cavalier..." this is a step back and YMAS have stuttered where they should have sung their hearts out. Disappointing. [5]
We open up with the title-track and it's a slow, groove-laden, almost sultry number, it's a little bluesy with incorporated gang-vocals and with it's pretty uniform approach throughout it's really quite monotonous overall, it works as a warm up just fine but being the albums title track, it raises a few red flags...luckily however, "Plus One" bursts into life immediately afterward and this is more like it. At just over two and a half minutes it's almost a sucker punch; a short dose of more attitude filled rock 'n' roll bringing the album to life, and despite it's brief run-time it builds to an entertaining crescendo, leaving the listener wanting more, and they do get SOME..."Swear" is a simplistically bouncy alt.rock track, quite the foot tapper and a genuinely catchy chorus makes this another enjoyable listen, though not as intense as the aforementioned, before "Can't Hold Back", another album highlight, brings the funk by the bucket load. Here though we have an issue, as good as this is, it's as good as it gets...
"Heavy Soul" and especially "Take On The World" are far softer offerings and while this is in no way a negative (every album needs light and shade) they feel somewhat lacklustre. The latter sounds like it was made in a lab using COLDPLAY and ONE DIRECTION DNA...it's the Indominus Rex (in principle) of ballads...just, no. Likewise, "Spell It Out" and closing track "Give" offer nothing particularly special. Franceschi has a lovely vocal don't get me wrong, there's a sweetness to his voice and he is suited to a pop-fuelled croon, and musically the gentle tracks aren't unpleasant by any means, and there are moments of hope, but this could be so much more. "Night People"? More specifically, Sunday night, when there's nothing on TV, nowhere to go and nothing to to. Compared to "Cavalier..." this is a step back and YMAS have stuttered where they should have sung their hearts out. Disappointing. [5]
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