Albums

The View - Which Bitch?

TC 10/02/2009

Rating: 2/5

I was left in wonderment why nobody here in Godland wanted to put together some joined up writing to express their opinions on The View's second outing, so with sword of tin and shield of card here I am throwing myself to the advancing troops demanding a view on The View.


The benefit of plagiarism is with me of course, because all the lesser publications and sites have already published, so a mere wielding of the cut and paste brush should be enough - oh no, not me! You see, pretty much all the others rated “Which Bitch?” as being rather good and yet, no matter how many times I play it, it fails to toss my caber.


I remember just two years ago, expressing my delight for the debut “Hats Off To The Buskers” amidst a sea of scorned disbelief amongst my compatriots. Despite that, I continued to sing praises of it and stand by that opinion now. It was full of great tunes, crowd-pleasing anthems, rebellious chanting and no pretence of being anything other than a good time record. I'm afraid that, this time around, all four of those boxes remain unchecked.


I read elsewhere that they have been rather clever in changing their direction/style, rather than repeating what was hugely successful before (why on earth would a band want to retain that eh?). Well I'm having none of it - this outing is devoid of direction, inspiration and ideas, simple as that. For me, they've run prematurely dry and really should've worn those same jeans. My suspicion is that there was precious little left in their wardrobe.


Kyle Falconer's deeply-accented vocals remain as ubiquitous as before and musically they are a solid enough team. Top that with Owen Morris' production and you ought to be revelling in something extra special. The only reason that isn't the case is that the songs are generally weak. Last year's single “5Rebeccas” is typical of the set: it kicks off in boisterous mood but doesn't really shift up a gear, that you find yourself listening to a three and a half minute song that seems to last for six. Then there's “One Off Pretender” including, of all things, a rap - it's poorly executed and really doesn't suffice in being a 'change in direction.' On the positive side, there are tracks like “Shock Horror” which has a bit more punch to it and “Glass Smash” being somewhat more innovative, although neither offering nearly enough to save the show.


Constantly comparing so many new bands to the output of The Libertines is irritating and The View receive their fair share of these. I'm not a huge Libertines fan but their impact was phenomenal - I see nothing here to suggest The View will get anywhere near that level. In fact, I go as far as to say that the third album will be the death of them, despite public opinion to the contrary on this one.
So there you have it. I accept that I am now going to get that caber rammed firmly up my arse, with only The Guardian to share the pain, but I'm shaking firmly on my ground!