aaamusic | On 23, Oct 2011

Hull-bred folk outfit Circus Envy’s new single Say Something is a double-faced affair. A-side Say Something is catchy as hell, all dolled up in strings and snares, as if threatening to conquer the universe with its fiery, even flamenco-ish guitar visions. It shows the band’s inspirations quite clearly: they take Marcus Mumford, tone down the self-indulgence and add some much needed straightforwardness. “You can’t come in, you can’t come in” is the firm refrain facing the listener, like doors shutting on its nose. However, B-side Regret is a completely different beast altogether. Consistently with that title, it’s tiresome and vain. ‘Regret is a burden that has weighed on me and made me see the man in me’ and further such pitiful ramble ensue. The jumpy strummed guitars do their best to uplift this atmosphere, but unfortunately fail.

This single strikes you as being a tad bipolar. First confrontational, then shied-away. It still has to be said that, if we were to take the old a-side/b-side distinction, the second half of that double-face wouldn’t count as much as the first. So, holding on to that myth, we trust in the feisty side of Circus Envy, hoping they’ll choose to stick to it.

 

Chiara Amoroso