REVIEW: Noah And The Whale - Last Night On Earth

Noah and the Whale
Last Night On Earth   
(Shock Records)
.5 (out of 5)

‘There is more to be found in the world than dreams'. Preoccupied throughout with the boundary between youth and age, innocence and nostalgia, big dreams and their pallid reality, Noah and the Whale’s third release, Last Night On Earth, boasts a mature sound, peppered with gaps through which the insecurity of youth can be glimpsed. From the optimistic 80s sound of ‘Tonight’s The Kind Of Night’ to the infectious violin riffs of ‘Just Me Before We Met’, Noah and the Whale have woven a rich and jangly tableau of tales studded with catchy hooks and plaintive vocals.

This album is strong on storytelling; it’s simultaneously reflective and anticipatory, illusory and disillusioned - the characters and scenes sketched by the deft songwriting are engaging. The album oozes themes of the outsider, self-conscious shoutouts to Bukowski and stylistic influences such as Lou Reed and Tom Waits. Despite these strokey-beard references, in the main, Last Night On Earth does not feel as though it is trying too hard, though the singer does at times display a somewhat standard issue US hipster accent and tone that may come off as a bit pretentious. This is a narrative driven body of work that, despite its trendy East London credentials, does not give a sense of having come from anywhere in particular, and so is reflective of the album’s broader themes of liminality.

By Alex P