SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: BOMBAY BICYCLE CLUB – MY BIG DAY

BOMBAY BICYCLE CLUB
MY BIG DAY
ARTS & CRAFTS

My Big Day, the latest release from Bombay Bicycle Club, is another fabulous record by the indie rockers, with its relaxing and warm vocals, expressive songwriting, and instrumentation ranging from breezy and gentle folk to bouncy and fun pop-rock to more unfamiliar territory. Indie rock remains in great hands with Bombay Bicycle Club.

The creativity and ambition of Bombay Bicycle Club and their willingness to constantly evolve their style continue to set them apart from their indie rock counterparts. “I Want To Be Your Only Pet” is super psychedelic and one of their heaviest song to date, especially the intense and noisy end. The drumming is kinetic and lively, the guitar has a nasty tone and sounds super dirty, and Jack Steadman’s vocals are the best they have ever been. Steadman is known for his calm and quiet voice, but this track sees him on the verge of a loud and angry outburst (a full-on yell by Steadman would have been awesome). “Meditate” (featuring Nilüfer Yanya) erupts into an insane jazzy solo, and it rocks. The sound is incredibly expansive, wild, and layered. “Heaven” (featuring Damon Albarn) feels like David Bowie meets Radiohead meets Bombay Bicycle Club and is one of the most experimental and avant-garde tracks in their catalogue. The main highlight is the strange and somewhat offbeat noise heard throughout, especially the opening.

There are a few songs from My Big Day that give off vibes of classic Bombay Bicycle Club. “Turn The World On”, “Onward”, and “Diving” (featuring Holly Humberstone) will please longtime fans of the band. “Turn The World On” is one of the band’s catchiest tunes. It features a whimsical acoustic guitar reminiscent of their album Flaws, and it has great lyrical depth. “Onward” combines the sound of their first three albums (I Had The Blues But I Shook Them Loose, Flaws, and A Different Kind of Fix). Indie rock, post-punk, and folk all come together on this absolute banger of a track. “Diving” (featuring Holly Humberstone) has soothing and delicate vocal performances from Steadman and Humberstone. Their voices blend perfectly and flow together beautifully. It also has sparkling and jumpy keys that will get stuck in your head long after the song is done playing. Overall, the track is introspective, super heartwarming, and bound to cheer you up.

Some strange choices bring down this album. “Rural Radio Predicts The Rapture” would have worked way better without any vocals. The instrumentation is vibrant, incredibly cinematic, and eclectic. Powerful horns and frantic drumming dominate the song’s first half, giving it a sort of marching band sound. Then it turns into this strange techno thing, and it sounds fantastic. These two different styles somehow mix very well together. Unfortunately, the high-pitched vocals ruin the song for me as it is very irritating. “Just A Little More Time” feels like a “filler song” they put together last minute. There are a few interesting moments on the track, but the monotonous instrumentation gets tiresome and feels uninspired. It is the only song on the album that is worth skipping.

It might not be their best work, but My Big Day is captivating, nuanced, melodic, and full of surprises.

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