Wall of Arms

Wall of Arms
Studio album by The Maccabees
Released 4 May 2009
Genre Indie rock
Length 37:08
Label Fiction
Producer Markus Dravs
The Maccabees chronology
Colour it in
(2007)		 Wall of Arms
(2009)		 Given to the Wild
(2012)

Wall of Arms is the second studio album by the English indie band The Maccabees, released on 4 May 2009. The album was preceded by the single "Love You Better" on 27 April. The LP was produced by Markus Dravs, who has collaborated with Björk, Arcade Fire and Coldplay in the past.

Wall Of Arms was also worked on in various cities including Liverpool and Paris, unlike their first long-player which was recorded in "dribs and drabs" according to frontman Orlando Weeks.[1] The video to the album's first official single, "Love You Better", was uploaded exclusively to ClashMusic.com on 27 March ahead of a 27 April release.[2] A review on the same website reads: "The Maccabees have made sure that no listener is going to leave the experience not feeling touched in some way – by the tonal dexterity, the lyrical openness, or something that’s not so obvious until the third or fourth listen." [3] The album leaked on 26 April 2009.

The album's cover art was created by British artist Boo Ritson, using her technique of coating her subjects with high gloss emulsion and photographing the result.

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[4]
Clash(very positive)[5]
Drowned In Sound(7/10)[6]
The Fly[7]
Gigwise[8]
God Is in the TV Zine[9]
The Guardian.[10]
The London Paper[11]
NME(8/10)[12]
The Observer[13]
Planet Sound(8/10)[14]
The Times[15]

Many professional critics have said that this album, especially the track "No Kind Words", shows a much darker and evolved sound than former album Colour It In:

Inevitably, comparisons were drawn to Arcade Fire's album Neon Bible, since Markus Dravs produced and used similar techniques on both records:

Track listing

All tracks by The Maccabees

  1. "Love You Better" – 3:20
  2. "One Hand Holding" – 3:01
  3. "Can You Give It?" – 2:54
  4. "Young Lions" – 3:00
  5. "Wall of Arms" – 3:04
  6. "No Kind Words/Bag of Bones Part A" – 3:39
  7. "Dinosaurs" – 3:15
  8. "Kiss and Resolve" – 3:07
  9. "William Powers" – 3:30
  10. "Seventeen Hands" – 3:49
  11. "Bag of Bones Part B" - 4.41

iTunes Extended Version Tracks

12. "Empty Vessels" (Single Version) Featuring Roots Manuva - 3.13
13. "Hearts that Strangle" - 1.32
14. "Accordion Song" - 2.49
15. "Sleep Tonight" - 4.04
16. "I Drove All Night" - 3.46

Singles

Personnel

References

  1. ↑ The Maccabees Reveal Wall Of Arms Details - AngryApe.com
  2. ↑ Maccabees Video Exclusive - ClashMusic.com
  3. 1 2 Maccabees Album Review - ClashMusic.com
  4. ↑ Wall of Arms at AllMusic
  5. ↑ Clash review
  6. ↑ Drowned in Sound review
  7. ↑ The Fly review
  8. ↑ Gigwise review
  9. ↑ God Is in the TV Zine review
  10. ↑ The Guardian review
  11. ↑ The London Paper review
  12. ↑ NME review
  13. ↑ The Observer review
  14. ↑ Planet Sound review
  15. ↑ The Times review
  16. ↑ - musicomh.com
  17. ↑ Tim Jonze (1 May 2009). "Pop review: The Maccabees, Wall of Arms | Music". London: The Guardian. Retrieved 2012-03-13.
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