Gods and Monsters

by

I Am Kloot

Edit

I Am Kloot has put out a few cool albums. They are part of the scene in Manchester. John Bramwell is a talented songwriter. Their first self-titled album released here was an amazing feat. It was full of hits. I was shocked to hear this new one. I bought the single "Over My Shoulder." It surprises me. It sounded more relaxed and subtle. Some of the epic songs of the past were replaced by some intimate stories-songs on this one. There are songs which are deceptively plain like "An Ordinary Girl' and "No Direction Home." There are some atmospheric songs. There is more meandering. There is more of a folk vibe on this one. Bramwell has become one of the new British songwriters who are something like John Lennon. This is great music, it is deep and moving, and it deserves a wider audience.

Their 3rd album takes us in a different direction again compared to the previous 2. It seems to have taken a quirky and darker route almost, with the exception of "Over My Shoulder" the upbeat lead single from the album (also I Am Kloots highest charting single too!!!). The production on "Gods And Monsters" is semi-lo-fi and natural, using microphones placed in the corner of a ceiling to get the right sound for a guitar part among other things. "Avenue Of Hope" is one of the stand out tracks and features a beautiful trumpet solo and classic Kloot lyrics, "Coincidence" is one of the darker moments and the band used to open their live shows with this song. Amongst these tracks there are real Kloot classics such as "The Stars Look Familiar", "I Believe" and "Astray" which could be called a relation to "No Fear Of Falling" from their debut album.

3 star rating in comparison to their other 2 albums, it is not the best, but it is not terrible either and is a welcome addition to my collection... I play it regularly still a year on.