The Wombats
Glitterbug

3.0
good

Review

by DaveyBoy EMERITUS
April 10th, 2015 | 75 replies

Release Date: 2015 | Tracklist

Review Summary: "I've been here before... I don't really care & I don’t ever wanna change".

Has any band gone from charming to annoying as swiftly as The Wombats? It’s not entirely clear how this occurred, although it may have something to do with the Liverpudlians appearing on every single type of music festival. But since when has frequent touring been a negative trait? Or maybe it’s because the indie-pop act were a little late to the party and ultimately rather derivative. Then again, they have also outlasted many of their peers. Could it possibly be due to the immense distance between the trio’s best and worst tunes? Or is that just proof that their top tracks are very very good. Possibly the most popular explanation is that the band stagnate with their want to simply refine their basic formula. Who knows… but one thing’s for certain: Third LP ‘Glitterbug’ won’t do anything to change anyone’s opinion of The Wombats.

Having previously released infectious hits such as ‘Let’s Dance to Joy Division’ and ‘Tokyo (Vampires & Wolves)’, the top end of ‘Glitterbug’ does not reach such stratospheric heights. Singles ‘Your Body is a Weapon’ (released eighteen months ago), ‘Greek Tragedy’ and ‘Give Me a Try’ are catchy and satisfying in the moment, but their chart failure is especially telling. This trio of tracks plus opener ‘Emoticons’ and ‘Be Your Shadow’ are interchangeable and set down the template for the album, with synth-driven pop-rock melodies being the order of the day. Anything that strays from this formula – clubby lightweight ‘This Is Not a Party’ and sparse ballad ‘Isabel’ – do not necessarily enhance the listening experience, although it is noteworthy that the bottom of the ‘Glitterbug’ barrel is not as low as its two predecessors.

Co-producer Mark Crew (Bastille, Fantasma) has polished up The Wombats’ sound as one would expect, with the mix of synths and organic instrumentation actually finding a nice balance. ‘Glitterbug’ is pleasant enough and far from a chore to listen to, even if it feels too safe and inoffensive to warrant repeated listening. It’s almost as if the undoubted 80s worshipping of bands such as Simple Minds and Tears For Fears needed to be even more shameless to evoke a greater response. Possibly the most disappointing aspect of the album is that witty lyrics – once such a selling point for the band - are rare here, with lead vocalist Matthew Murphy’s shift to Los Angeles not really adding a great deal of original content. On ‘Emoticons’, Murphy claims that “It’s tough to feign indifference”… He better hope that’s what people are actually doing when listening to ‘Glitterbug’, because that surely would be preferable to genuine indifference.

Recommended Tracks: Give Me a Try, Your Body Is a Weapon & Emoticons.

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