aaamusic | On 05, Nov 2011

There’s something oddly appealing about Low Level Flight. I’m not sure whether it’s the way they manage to create a palatable brand of stadium pop-rock, or the way they can write a soothing yet uplifting hook, and take it into the atmosphere with keening guitars and energetic backing vocals.

 

‘Cash Machine’ is almost deceptive in its streetwise indie-rock lyricism, although the intro is a dreamy affair that ties the song into the album nicely. Here, the vocals are much more downcast and lower in pitch than in other songs, and the drumming is much more forwards in the mix, however the treble-strong guitar and almost ethereal yet sing-along backing vocals stop this from getting too hard and rocky. You’d think that ‘Exit’ would be a slice of poppy post-punk to put them up there with Interpol, in its dark and dense, cymbal heavy mood, and the downcast chorus. An instrumental section with tense reverberating guitars and heavy piano chords add to this, but there’s once again a pop atmosphere throughout, and the follower ‘Raining Castles’ is more 80s era U2 than anything else. Still very much a monochrome mood here, but the guitar riffs are much more minimal and melodic than before with lilting, almost singalong tones, and the chorus and the tremolo buildup just cries out for a stadium audience and a shimmering lightshow.

By the time we hit ‘Quiet Rage’, Low Level Flight are firmly entrenched in morose yet accessible pop. Personally, I prefer this side of them, similar to the first two tracks in its brooding Interpol style, with solid rhythms and crystalline yet weighty mixing rather than their more Coldplay/Edge moments. So this and its dark follower ‘Bloody Knuckles’ are definitely on my better side, although the lyrics of the latter put me on edge despite the great instrumentation that caps pretty much everything else on the album. ‘Tsk Tsk’ is hard on its heels in many respects, with a much stronger energy, but doesn’t feel quite as crafted, although of all the tracks, it’s this one with its fiery chorus (where the band finally let loose) that I would probably most like to see live. So the tedious sub-Springsteen via Snow Patrol balladry of ‘Brooklyn Radio’ is a real letdown, with cloying lyrics and an instrumental side that borders on soporific.

‘Your Name Here’ is an odd hybrid of the previous Interpol with a semi-acoustic twang and poppy eloquence in the lyrics that bring to mind Saves The Day, albeit with an unnecessary “woah-oh-oh” moment after the chorus that undermines the moments of quality. ‘Cast Diversion’ is much better, with an almost New Order feel to it in the bassy drive and added energy. ‘Floor’ has a superb opening riff, let down by a sub-par indie rock style skank rhythm.

To finish, the melancholy stadium rock returns with title track ‘Through These Walls’. A heartfelt vocal delivery, backed up with atmospheric guitar and hauntingly immense percussion, ensures that the attention that waned in the past couple of songs returns for one last stretch, and there is a sense of gratification in the slow-burn buildups, albeit one hampered by the trite pre-chorus that never quite gets going, and so delays the chorus a bit. However, it does no doubt save the album from fizzling out.

 

If you like Interpol, White Lies and Chapel Club, I would hazard a guess at saying you’d find appeal in ‘Through These Walls’. Low Level Flight have here a phantom pop rock that holds large potential, and although I’d have to say they don’t entirely deliver here, what they have on offer shouldn’t be written off either.

 

Katie H-Halinski