Published by Mason Oldridge, 15 April 2023
Keane members Tim Rice-Oxley and Jesse Quin’s country music side project is back with a third album, leaning much more towards their mellowed self-titled debut than their upbeat follow-up When The Night Calls.
Rice-Oxley is nothing short of a musical genius. Despite composing a decade-long discography of perfection as Keane, he is also the mastermind who has recreated guitar sounds by playing keyboard through an amplifier and programmed bass on a laptop when the main band missed a guitarist. Therefore, it is all the more disappointing that his partnership with Quinn has produced a record that lacks wonder and excitement.
Unfortunately, most tracks are too dreary to be memorable and are not distinguishable enough from each other. The emotion might be there in the lyrics but the music doesn't match it enough to convey it in a way it perhaps deserves.
Some tracks are inevitably better than others. Too Hard A Stone encompasses jazz and features Rice-Oxley’s vulnerable vocals reminiscent of the old Keane demos whereas Wolfhouse is the highlight with a fun melody and haunting piano.
Overall, the talent is there but sadly unfulfilled in what feels like wasted potential.
4/10