White Lies

Hooray!
The album finally leaked at the weekend. So, being the winter/spring 2009 buzz band (this time last year it was MGMT, and then it was Glasvegas etc.) it was interesting to see what they've got to offer.
Having seen them live about 7 months ago, I got quite excited and went home to see if I could get my hands on any of their demos or any kind of material. No such luck. This band have kept their cards so close to their chest that there were only 3 tracks of theirs (if you were lucky) to hunt down before this weekend.
So, after first listen the album's a bit "ok". Not as dark as I remember them being - I think in a way they reminded me slightly of my teenage love of Alkaline Trio, but on record they sound like The Killers (anthemic but watered down indie-pop) gone gloomy. I think I'll have to go and see them live again, because all I can think of as I listen to them is the frontman being a Chris Martin/Brandon Flowers hybrid - which he isn't (thankfully), but they seem to have over polished this debut a bit too much for my liking.
The worst thing is that I can totally see instrumental versions of their tracks being the backing music for TV sports results real soon.

Oh well, either their punk-pop-gloom edge will come back to me after a few listens, or I'll succumb to the fact that their destined to be a totally overplayed Radio 1 Playlist band where any kind of individuality in their music is watered down by the fact that you won't be able to escape their music unless you run to the Himalayas and live in a cave.

One song that didn't leak until the weekend that I'm liking at the moment is "E.S.T.". "Death", "To Lose My Life" and "Unfinished Business" are good songs, but have had such a heavy rotation on my iTunes over the past 6 months, that I've already over-killed on them a bit! - Oooops.
Right, I'm off to listen to the new Franz Ferdinand offering.