Being a human being, is sometimes about being, and sometimes it’s more than being human.

I personally want for nothing when it comes to emotions, experiencing most of what life has to offer in my nerve-endings. Though there are some highs I’ll likely never witness, but that’s okay. Biologically I’m a special snowflake, and I know that I can’t compete with every other life model out there – limited edition baby.

Know what I’m sayin’?

 

 

 

Glass Animals – How To Be A Human Being
released August 26, 2016
********** 10/10

Glass Animals are an English indie rock band that make indie rock.

Just kidding, they are an indie rock band that combine psychedelic pop, trip hop, electronica, and R&B together to make their sweet sweet music. They have been active since 2012 and have made two studio length albums through their associations with Wolf Tone, Caroline International, and Harvest Records. Lead vocalist Dave Bayley had originally planned to go to medical school, but the band was picked up after Adele’s producer Paul Epworth saw the band performing.

These guys are eclectic as fuck. And I realize that’s not very poetic, but as you spend time with that sentence, you’ll start to dig back some layers, much like what I experienced as I listened to this album over quite a few listens. I found it very difficult to put down and even more difficult to not sing along as I learned the music and lyrics, letting my imagination run with the music.

Glass Animals are really good at jam packing a song full of weird noises and making it sound like there wasn’t any other option. The hooks are catchy and the beats are clean, not to mention that this is an album about people. Featuring anecdotes from people, though we’ll never know if those samples are staged or not. But I’m not sure it really matters, because the cornucopia assembled here just worked rather well. I’m gonna have a hard time putting this one down, and that’s saying a lot because I really liked the new Goo Goo Dolls, Weezer, Radiohead, The 1975 and Kendrick Lamar albums I’ve reviewed this year, but I seem to have pineapples in my head now courtesy of Pork Soda. And I want to play Nintendo mainly because of Season 2 Episode 3.

It’s an album of diversity and empathy. Mama’s Gun has an orchestral quality to it, but the lyrics reveal a disturbed portrait of a woman on a mission of remembrance, and it’s beautiful to listen to – It actually gave me goosebumps. And then they follow it up with the hip hop genius of Cane Shuga.

This is not your parent’s concept album folks, it’s full of human beings being human. There is no real start, middle or ending, because you can listen to anyone of these tracks separately or as the authors intended. That’s the rollercoaster of life. It’s lonely, but yet in that loneliness there is a comfort knowing we all collectively share that experience – full of happiness, sadness, anger, tears, sex, humour, and a host of other feelings.

 

 

 

An excellent survey into the human condition all in all. These guys might be glass animals, but they know a thing or two about being human. Join me here tomorrow, same bat time, same bat channel for another pop culture sensation from the 1960s, reimagined.

Tim!