The Wombats To Release New Single

The Wombats will be releasing a new single, Your Body Is A Weapon, on October 2nd. The single is the first taken from their third album, due out in 2014. No other details are known about it yet.

Best Of 2011: #6

#6 - The Wombats - This Modern Glitch

Original review here.

Four years passed between the Wombats' debut album and this one, and the difference is sound is so huge you can barely tell it's the same band. But this change in sound, to a more uplifting electronic pop sound, is welcome. It's another summer-y feel-good album, filled with more hooks than you can shake a fist at. The greatest ones are speedy opener Our Perfect Disease, the massive anthem Techno Fan and the rockier penultimate track Girls / Fast Cars. But they're all big, epic pop songs at heart, and this is an album that was definitely worth the wait.

Album Review: The Wombats - This Modern Glitch

Album: This Modern Glitch
Artist: The Wombats
Singles: Tokyo (Vampires & Wolves), Jump Into The Fog, Anti-D, Techno Fan

Well, this has been a long time coming. Four years after the band's debut A Guide To Love, Loss And Desperation, the catchy guitar riffs that littered it have been replaced with synths, in keeping with what a lot of bands are doing these days. The album was originally set for a 29th November 2010 release, but it got pushed back three times, resulting in more and more singles coming out before the album, and the fact that three of them are just one after the other makes the album drag a bit; not because they're bad songs (quite the opposite), but just because you've heard them all before. However, I know that not many people will have overplayed these singles as much as I have, so in this review I've tried to bear that in mind.

Our Perfect Disease
An absolutely stunning opener. We're thrown right in with synths and vocals, instantly recognisable as a new direction for the band. Soon, a little cheesy sounding synth line pops up to lead us into the chorus of "it was the perfect disease we had" where the guitars return, albeit confined to the background, and the song becomes almost danceable. And then, it really gets going. With traditional Wombats "ooh-ooh-ooh"s and "ah-ah-ah"s, the song hurtles forward yet again, growing and growing up to the final chorus, ending abruptly on the last line "We all need someone to drive us mad".

Tokyo (Vampires & Wolves)
Now we're entering the run of singles that have already been released. This one is the oldest, having been released roughly seven months ago. It was the right choice for first single, in my opinion. It has a memorable synth line, a catchy beat, and a sing-along chorus. However, I would consider this to be my least favourite on the album (I had to quickly run through every song in my head again to check that was actually true, but it is) - maybe it's because I've played it so many times, or maybe it's just because it doesn't really go anywhere. But even though this is my least favourite, it's still decent enough not to make me want to press the 'next' button.

Jump Into The Fog
The second single, and, once upon a time, a free download. Again it's got the right qualities for a single, with its catchy tune and its nice, big chorus, complete with the backing of a choir. "We feel nothing so jump into the fog, in the hope that we hit the ground upright", goes the chorus, with singer Matthew Murphy's vocals showing off their range. The song ends quite heavily, guitars and synths almost drowning out the chant of "jump into the fog!". Again, I may have heard this one too much already, but it's not up there with my favourites from this album.

Anti-D
This song is a much more mature-sounding one than anything off the first album or even anything else on this one, with an unexpected strings section opening it up. It opens with the line "Please allow me to be your anti-depressant" - a line I never thought I'd hear opening a song. The lyrics as a whole feel like they've tried to cram a little too much into certain lines, but after a few listens that doesn't matter. At first it's hard to discern why this became a single, but by the 2-minute mark when the familiar Wombats 'ah-ah-ah's pop up, the song turns epic. It's maybe more of a grower than we're used to from this band, and it is very different to what we might expect from them - but once it hits home, it's kind of refreshing. (Yes, I did copy that from my original single review, but it seemed the best way to imitate what I felt about it first time round)

Last Night I Dreamt...
This song opens in epic fashion, with a huge guitar-synth combination bringing you back up to full speed after the relatively slow Anti-D. The verses drive the song forward on this song; the chorus, although still good, seems to be a bit of an anti-climax after the opening parts seemed to promise something huge, but it seems to calm down instead. But it's still a great song, and grows and grows on repeat listens. The last line of the song had me going back a few seconds to see if I had heard him right (and I had): "when I lost my virginity, I've never been known to frighten easily". Interesting lyrics, at the very least.

Techno Fan
The upcoming fourth single is actually one of my top songs for this album, unlike the other three (although I'm making that sound like I don't like the other three, when I really do) This one follows slightly in the footsteps of Our Perfect Disease, building up to a first chorus before calming it down, and then just exploding straight afterwards. When the second chorus comes round, you'll find yourself wanting to sing along to "shut up and move with me, move with me..." Definitely one of the highlights of the album.

1996
Another one of my favourites (not my absolute favourite, that's yet to come). Even though it's a fairly standard affair, its verses have a catchy beat and the chorus is huge-sounding and quite memorable. "We kissed with one eye on our TV set, and the more I give, the less I get" it goes. And it gets better as guitars make their way to the forefront of the song around three minutes in. As the rest of the band backs up Murphy with their "da-da-da"s matching the tune to the chorus as he sings "I'll never beat those teenage kicks", we are treated to an epic ending to an epic song.

Walking Disasters
This one fools you at first into thinking it's got a sort of summery vibe to it, but the bass comes in to turn it into a slightly deeper song, whilst retaining the catchiness of its beat. It also features one of my favourite lyrics; "If these words won't drop from your lips, I will be your Freudian slip". It slows down the pace a little bit, and is probably the closest you're going to get to the Wombats of 2007 on this album, even though its still quite a long way off. Still it's quite impressive. The last 20 seconds serve as a build up to...

Girls / Fast Cars
The best song on the album by a long way, this one is an absolutely storming rock song, although it's quite reserved for the first 45 seconds. The chorus is the ultimate sing-along, "I like girls! Girls and fast cars! It's cheap and it's pathetic, but you can't hate me just because". The last 30 seconds are just absolutely spine-tingling,one of the best moments in music I've heard this year. My only complaint is that it's over so quickly that I needed to listen to it again straight after! Yes, it's that good.

Schumacher The Champagne
This one is quite an unexpected ending, slowing down the pace a bit, with arcade-style synths backing quite a lot of the song. However, the keyword for the whole of this album is 'catchy', and this one adheres to this. It does require a few repeat listens to sink in, as it's more of a build-up song, but the ending is perhaps the heaviest thing on the album, vocals sounding slightly over-amplified and guitars turned up to 11. And to close it off completely, 45 seconds of randomness reminiscent of the chorus in Tokyo (Vampires & Wolves) - slightly odd but oh well.

Well, overall, it's a absolutely amazing blend of electronic, pop and indie music, with some incredibly catchy and upbeat moments all throughout. The only exception to this is Anti-D, where they adopt a slightly more serious approach (to be fair, the song is about dealing with depression) but even that one has its moments. There's not a single song that I don't like on here, every single one has got certain moments that I love hearing. And Girls / Fast Cars is the ultimate highlight - if they don't play this one live, I'll be amazed. I think it should have been a single rather than Anti-D. But oh well, I have the album now and I'll listen to it as many times as I want! But the band have avoided second album problems, as the results are energetic, playful, catchy, and sounds absolutely massive at times.

SCORE

Previous albums: A Guide To Love, Loss And Desperation (7/10)

Single Review: The Wombats - Anti-D

Single: Anti-D
Artist: The Wombats
From the album This Modern Glitch

This is actually the third single taken from the Wombats' second album, after Tokyo (Vampires & Wolves) and Jump Into The Fog, but it's the one that precedes the album after all its delays - four years since the debut album! The song itself is a much more mature-sounding one than anything off the first album or even this one (if the 90-second previews on the band's YouTube are anything to go by), with an unexpected strings section opening it up. It opens with the line "Please allow me to be your anti-depressant" - a line I never thought I'd hear opening a song. The lyrics as a whole feel like they've tried to cram a little too much into certain lines, but after a few listens that doesn't matter. At first it's hard to discern why this became a single, but by the 2-minute mark when the familiar Wombats 'ah-ah-ah's pop up, the song turns epic. It's maybe more of a grower than we're used to from this band, and it is very different to what we might expect from them - but once it hits home, it's kind of refreshing.

SCORE

Preview This Modern Glitch

If you have iTunes, 30 second previews of The Wombats' second album, This Modern Glitch, are available to listen now.

Click here and click on "View in iTunes" to have a listen.

The Wombats - This Modern Glitch

Artwork


Tracklist
01. Our Perfect Disease
02. Tokyo (Vampires & Wolves)
03. Jump Into The Fog
04. Anti-D
05. Last Night I Dreamt...
06. Techno Fan
07. 1996
08. Walking Disasters
09. Girls / Fast Cars
10. Schumacher The Champagne

The album is due out 25th April.

Two singles have been released - Tokyo (in September 2010) and Jump Into The Fog (in January 2011). A third is due on 11th April, and that is Anti-D.

Next Single From This Modern Glitch

The third single from the Wombats' upcoming second album has been announced as Anti-D, not Techno Fan as previously reported; however, Techno Fan is assumed to be the eventual fourth single.

Anti-D is the first track on the new album, This Modern Glitch, due out April 25th. The single is due out on the 11th of the same month. The video is set to go up later this February.

This Modern Glitch Pushed Back AGAIN.

Yes, the Wombats' new album, This Modern Glitch, has been pushed back for a third time. Thankfully it's not a massive change unlike the first two changes (November 29th changed to February 7th, which then turned to April 11th).

The album will now be released on 25th April. A single, Techno Fan, will be released 11th April (NB. This has not been officially confirmed)

Let's hope the date sticks this time.

This Modern Glitch Pushed Back Again

According to a news post on the Wombats' official site, This Modern Glitch will now be released two months later, on April 11th. Techno Fan, the supposed second single from the album, has now been dropped as the next single, and instead will be replaced by previously released free download track Jump Into The Fog on 24th January. However, it is assumed that Techno Fan will get a release closer to the album release date.

Techno Fan's First Play

The new Wombats single, Techno Fan, will get its first airing on Zane Lowe's Radio 1 show on Thursday around 19.30.

It is the third song to be released from their upcoming sophomore album, This Modern Glitch, after first single Tokyo (Vampires & Wolves) and free download Jump Into The Fog.

The Wombats - New Album And Single

The Wombats' second album has been given a title: This Modern Glitch. It will be released 7th February 2011. It will be preceded by the single Techno Fan, due out 24th January, two weeks beforehand.

Two songs have already been released: Tokyo (Vampires & Wolves) and Jump Into The Fog. The latter was released as a free download.

Other songs on the album will include: Anti-D (the first track), Schumacher The Champagne, Motorphobia and Perfect Disease. It is rumoured to be a 12-track album.

The Wombats Album - New Release Date

I thought the date of 29th November for the new Wombats album was a bit optimistic, and I was right - now it has been confirmed that the new Wombats album will be released on 7th February 2011.

We also now know the name of the first track on the album, Anti-D; and another track, Techno Fan. The album has already spawned one single, Tokyo (Vampires & Wolves).

Release Date For The Wombats' Second Album

According to at least three major retailers, The Wombats' second album will be released on 29th November.

The album is preceded by the single Tokyo (Vampires & Wolves), which had its first play on Radio 1 over a month ago. It will be released officially on 27th September.

There are no other details as of yet, although one song that has been mentioned previously is "Shock Goodbyes and P45s".