Jason Pierce has been releasing music since 1986 first with the influential Spacemen 3 with Sonic Boom before striving out on his own with Spiritualized.
Pierce has been the only constant member in Spiritualized over their nine-album recording career. Like many I suspect, they first came to my attention with Ladies and Gentlemen We are Floating In Space (needs reviewed) so Let It Come Down was purchased on release day back in 2001. I imagine others followed suite as the album debuted at number three in the charts.
Stop Your Crying was the lead single built on an orchestral arrangement. The verses build to the chorus where Pierce is joined by a choir, having read up on this album I have discovered that over one hundred musicians were involved and a Gospel Choir as well and took four years to complete, good job it was successful as I imagine recording costs were a few quid.
A singular piano launch us in On Fire which doesn’t let up for its four-minute stay, Do It All Over Again for me would not be out of place on the World Party Goodbye Jumbo album which I mean as a compliment, lovely and uncluttered.
Don’t Just Do Something could also be on a country album, it’s a ballad and the choir really enhance the song and Jason’s vocal and Out Of Sight just gathers momentum from minimal beginnings.
The Twelve Steps is on it from the start, guitar heavy before a brief interlude to allow us to reflect before storming back in, magic.
The Straight & The Narrow is epic, Pierces voice suits the strings and horns and the chorus build with the choir earning their money, He’s gone for epic and achieved it.
Won’t Get to Heaven slowly adds instrument after instrument and again we have the wonderful choir certainly earning their money and five minutes in we change tack as the instruments and choir hit a groove.
Lord Can You Hear Me ends the lesson that sometimes we need it all.
8/10 (the choir earning it extra points)
GIVE IT A STREAM: Do It All Over Again