The Chorus Music Club Society • Page 136

This EP is proof he can sing but it will be nowhere close to what people know.

 

Ben Howard
I Forget Where We Were
2014



This is the second album that @Sheaver10 assigned to me. I had heard of Ben Howard before, but I hadn't checked him out prior to this recommendation. If I recall correctly, it was on the AP.net year end staff list in 2014 (I looked for the list, but I didn't have any luck).

Ben Howard is a singer-songwriter from London, England and I Forget Where We Were is his second (and most recent) full-length album. I don't typically listen to many albums by singer-songwriters, so I appreciated getting this recommendation for this session!

Overall, I found this to be a fantastic album. Ben's vocals are terrific and the album was very strong lyrically. I look forward to spending more time with this record and focusing more on lyrics on future listens. Musically, the album was pretty laid back and quiet. Most of the songs are in the 5-6 minute range and slowly build. I am bad at assigning genres to artists, but Wikipedia classifies it as folk, indie folk, ambient, and shoegaze and that sounds about right.

As I said, I don't typically listen to many albums by singer-songwriters, so I don't have a very good "recommended if you like" section. I guess I would say I would recommend this to fans of Noah Gundersen. There are some similarities that I hear and I like him quite a bit too.

My favorite tracks so far are Small Things, In Dreams, and She Treats Me Well.

Thank you for the great recommendations this week @Sheaver10 !

 

Holy shit had no idea this album was recommended in here! Genuinely one of my favourites and a go-to that I always pick to put on out of my vinyl collection (beautiful packaging too). He's been busy playing guitar for A Blaze Of Feather recently rather than his own stuff which he's taken a break from so I hope he's back soon.

I think it was in the staff lists as part of my own individual staff list!

 

Nice!

This one was a bit of a gamble, cos I wasn’t sure if it would be your thing, but so glad you liked it!

Our favourite tracks are pretty similar as well which is cool!

I’ll try and get your reviews for you over the weekend, or on Monday.

 

Damn near every song on that record is great but the run of "Small Things">"Rivers In Your Mouth">"I Forget Where We Were" is amazing and I drift away to the likes of "Time Is Dancing" and "Conrad". Plus, you know, "End Of The Affair" and its climax.

Great record and so happy to see it in here. Noah Gundersen is so loved around here that I think you hit the nail on the head, if people enjoy him - they need to check Ben Howard out.

 

I think Time Is Dancing is my favourite on the album, but it’s a tough call haha!

Yeah I totally agree on the Noah Gundersen comparison as well @bachna84.

I think there may have been rumours of a new album in the works, which would be sweet, but I’m not sure how strong the rumours are/I might have just made them up.

 

That's how rumors get started!

 

You heard it here first ;)

 

I'm tired of rumors starting
I'm sick of being followed
I'm tired of people lying
Sayin' what they want about me
Why can't they back up off me
Why can't they let me live
I'm gonna do it my way
Take this for just what it is

 

Classic underrated song

 

I completely agree!

 

I accidentally got unsubbed from this thread, sorry if I missed anything pertinent!

When are the current reviews due and when are we returning to the week format?

 

Due Monday and we aready did lol

 

Excellent!

 

I’ll be posting next weeks partners here shortly

 

Alright here they are everyone!!!

CMCS
Season 9 pairings (01/29-02/05)

@BTDandFeelingThis // @Wall Of Arms

@bachna84 // @js977

@MikeyPaine // @AlwaysEvolving21

@ShadowTh2b // @teebs41

@thenewmatthewperry // @Kiana

@Larry David // @skogsraet

@Sheaver10 // @mescalineeyes

@marioeatworld // @Fuck You Aurora

@nickyeatworld // @EmmanuelSCastle

@Rob Hughes // @Fucking Dustin

@Joe4th // @Nate_Johnson

@Patterns in Traffic // @SaveTheEarth

@sean_rugy // @iCarly Rae Jepsen

@bree1981 // @JRGComedy

@Mary V // @jorbjorb

@BTDandFeelingThis // @Kennedy *

@mattfreaksmeout // @JoshShulkin

@CarpetElf // @Michael Schmidt

@fame // @KidLightning

@JM95 // @skurt

@Micool1 // @Colin Your Enthusiasm

@AelNire // @Craig Manning

*= odd number participants


Not on the list? DM me! I either made a mistake or you were benched. Dm me to find out how to get back on!

 

I think I have my weeks mixed up fuck. I'll figure it out tomorrow but I thought last weeks (?) Were for....this week(?) Or maybe I didn't. Like I said I'll figure it out tomorrow lol

 

@bachna84 the Harvey Danger album you gave me is not on Apple Music :(

Will do my write up for the album @skurt assigned to me this wknd.

 

Hmm must be a Canada thing ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Want me to give you another album?

 

@Kennedy I hope you make @BTDandFeelingThis listen to some more classics!

 

Yeah I guess it is lame but oh well. Well with the new pairings out now I don't know haha. I'm bad at taking the time to listen and collecting my thoughts enough to write something on what I'm assigned so maybe I'll just stick with the one I have lol. It's funny though because just before reading your write up on Paper Rival I actually played the whole album myself and then sort of added to what you said so at least I contributed in some way haha

 

That’s fine-work on your other write-ups but try to check out the Harvey Danger album if you ever get a chance. I think it’s a really solid, overlooked album from the 90s :)

 

I really want to hear it! I'll try and find it elsewhere. Blame Canada.

 

For the last pairing, @skurt had me listen to Lifestory: Monologue - Drag Your White Fur

Above all, this album is passionate. It is clear from the first track that the band and the vocalists are serious about their music and intensity. The production sounds really good too!

Most of the songs have that sort of throaty emo scream that seems to be popular, but I think that this band utilizes better than others. Usually that sort of thing would drive me up the wall, but I didn't really mind it here. One of my favorite moments on the album is the last 35 seconds or so of track 8, "Between the Rocks and the Clouds." The band pulls back a bit, the volume is a touch quieter, and it becomes almost a spoken word track. It's an effective breather both for the song and the album.

I haven't listened to any of the band's other work, but I noticed that their artwork all has a similar theme, which is cool as well. There's something to admire in a band that has an idea of what they like to do and what they are good at. Listen here.