Elbow – Build a Rocket Boys! (2011)

Elbow is an interesting band. Whenever I've heard their albums for the first time, I haven't been too impressed, but the more I listen to them, the more I like them. It takes time to discover the hooks and playful sound experimentations in their songs. I started listening to Elbow after their third album Leaders of the Free World and it took me a while to really understand the band at all, but now looking back, Leaders of the Free World and Cast of Thousands are incredible albums. A Seldom Seen Kid which followed those two, in my opinion, greatest albums of the band, was a move away from obscure. The songs were easier, but at the same time, not quite as original. Still, Elbow never lost their touch with the obscure. When I bought Build a Rocket Boys! just after having moved to London, I thought it was a bit boring compared to earlier albums, but when I listened to it more, I discovered that there are some absolutely astonishing songs on it.



Around the release of this album, Elbow was starting to fill huge arenas. I had not really realised they were so popular before moving to UK. In Finland, they were this obscure band that no-one had really heard of. In UK, I found out, it was one of the biggest names in modern music. I think that kind of proofs that the British have a superior musical taste. Where else could this obscure melancholic band make such a success? Around the same time I discovered that the music normal pubs play is far better here than it was back in Finland. Also, it's probably due to me living and working in the cooler areas of London, but I see interesting music advertised in billboards all around town. That would've never happened in Finland.

Guy Garvey commented that this album was kind of a shift for him personally, because he had become known as a melancholic songwriter, but he was at this time too happy to write believable melancholic songs about his own life. Therefore he had to go somewhere else to find inspiration. Build a Rocket Boys! is based on his childhood, which apparently wasn't quite as happy.

Many of Elbow songs start out really simple, but grow through the song revealing the biggest strengths only late in the song. One good example of a song like this is Lippy Kids, which starts with a simple monotonous melody, but explodes into airy beauty in the chorus. I really love this song. It tells about the state affairs in the UK where kids in hoodies are blamed for making the streets feel unsafe while they are basically a victim of a ruthless society.

Overall, there's a great interplay between quiet and beautiful ballads, and more uptempo, almost industrial sounding songs on the album. There's some great use of rhythm on the album, even if the most apparent focus goes to the melodies. It really requires a lot from a songwriter to write songs like this that don't sound much like anything in the beginning, but then they burst out with amazing melodies afterwards. I think usually people are good at writing either monotonous songs where the sounds take the main stage, or really melodic songs, which then again, may lack originality when it comes to sounds. Elbow combines both of these elements creating real sense of drama to their songs. They're also one of the few bands out there who still make real albums. Their albums make more sense as whole than as individual songs. In the time of the singles, I really appreciate this approach of slow wins.

Elbow has more recently made albums that I haven't really gotten excited about, but maybe it's just because I haven't used the appropriate time listening to them yet. My experience tells me that their albums have a tendency to reward the listener only later on. It was definitely the case with Build a Rocket Boys!

Listen to the album on Spotify.