CHUMBAWAMBA
Un
The long-serving agit-popsters return with their latest album, and quite good it is too. It does not feature any tracks in the 'rabble rousing' vein of 'Tubthumping' (which is not necessarily a bad thing), but it does feature twelve thoughtful and thought provoking songs.
The actual music is a clever mix of styles incorporating elements from diverse genres including folk, latin, hip hop and dance. While the instrumentation is predominantly acoustic, there is the occasional smattering of electronics to underpin the more dance-oriented tracks. The mood of the music is deliberately kept light and airy, which is at odds with the often serious nature of the subject matter dealt with by the lyrics.
The booklet included with the CD contains the lyrics for each of the songs together with a short piece of factual text that provides an insight into the background (or inspiration) for each one. Many consist of little known facts relating to news stories both past and (comparatively) present. Some seem fairly incredulous, but each one is informative and gives a different slant on the generally held consensus relating to those news stories. In
short, the type of information that is typically filtered out by the mass media.
'On eBay' covers an American university lecturer's reaction to the looting of museums in Bahgdad by US soldiers - he expected the stolen antiquities to appear on eBay.'Everything You Know Is Wrong' focuses on those shady individuals that feature in the best conspiracy theories (think of the cigarette-smoking man from the X-Files and you'll be on the right lines).
'Man Walks Into A Bar' speculates on the way that a certain manufacturer of rum protects its market share, while 'We Dont Want To Sing Along' probes the real cause behind the Columbine massacre.
However, this album does not dwell exclusively on the negative side of life and politics. A number of tracks concentrate positive efforts being made by some groups ('When Fine Society Sits Down To Dine' 'Following You'), while other songs concentrate on non-violent means of protest ('Buy Nothing Day', 'I Did It For Alfie'). 'Rebel Code' makes an interesting link between two of Finland's most widely known exports; the Molotov Cocktail (a tool beloved of rebels) and the Linux (a freeware operating system often seen as a
rebellious answer to Windows).
My own particular favourite song is 'Just Desserts' which features an insistent Eastern-tinged string line and highlights the exploits of the GPU (Global Pastry Uprising) who express their views by throwing a (sometimes well deserved) custard pie at 'the rich, the powerful and the pompous'.
Don't be put off by the political nature of the lyrics on this album. They are well crafted and are neatly contrasted by the bright and breezy backing music. In any case, Chumbawamba don't force their views down your throat, but seek to provide you with a different viewpoint from which you can make up your own mind about the issues they raise. On the whole, an enjoyable and thought provoking album.
The actual music is a clever mix of styles incorporating elements from diverse genres including folk, latin, hip hop and dance. While the instrumentation is predominantly acoustic, there is the occasional smattering of electronics to underpin the more dance-oriented tracks. The mood of the music is deliberately kept light and airy, which is at odds with the often serious nature of the subject matter dealt with by the lyrics.
The booklet included with the CD contains the lyrics for each of the songs together with a short piece of factual text that provides an insight into the background (or inspiration) for each one. Many consist of little known facts relating to news stories both past and (comparatively) present. Some seem fairly incredulous, but each one is informative and gives a different slant on the generally held consensus relating to those news stories. In
short, the type of information that is typically filtered out by the mass media.
'On eBay' covers an American university lecturer's reaction to the looting of museums in Bahgdad by US soldiers - he expected the stolen antiquities to appear on eBay.'Everything You Know Is Wrong' focuses on those shady individuals that feature in the best conspiracy theories (think of the cigarette-smoking man from the X-Files and you'll be on the right lines).
'Man Walks Into A Bar' speculates on the way that a certain manufacturer of rum protects its market share, while 'We Dont Want To Sing Along' probes the real cause behind the Columbine massacre.
However, this album does not dwell exclusively on the negative side of life and politics. A number of tracks concentrate positive efforts being made by some groups ('When Fine Society Sits Down To Dine' 'Following You'), while other songs concentrate on non-violent means of protest ('Buy Nothing Day', 'I Did It For Alfie'). 'Rebel Code' makes an interesting link between two of Finland's most widely known exports; the Molotov Cocktail (a tool beloved of rebels) and the Linux (a freeware operating system often seen as a
rebellious answer to Windows).
My own particular favourite song is 'Just Desserts' which features an insistent Eastern-tinged string line and highlights the exploits of the GPU (Global Pastry Uprising) who express their views by throwing a (sometimes well deserved) custard pie at 'the rich, the powerful and the pompous'.
Don't be put off by the political nature of the lyrics on this album. They are well crafted and are neatly contrasted by the bright and breezy backing music. In any case, Chumbawamba don't force their views down your throat, but seek to provide you with a different viewpoint from which you can make up your own mind about the issues they raise. On the whole, an enjoyable and thought provoking album.
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