True to their band-name, Manchester four-piece Everything Everything cram a great deal into their music and yet, it’s often never enough. The band’s exhaustive splicing of genres and layers has a tendency to overwhelm, but their third album Get To Heaven takes strides toward a more accessible, less scattered sound.
Competing with Get To Heaven’s maximalist compositions is the overstuffed production. Producer Stuart Price (Madonna, Kyle Minogue, Take That) pushes all the elements to the fore, which works against the compositions at times. But the best of the heady pop songs are stacked at the front of the album, and they dish up enough hooks and twists to appease chin-strokers, clubbers and radio listeners in equal measure.
Even better are the triumphant tracks, which resist trying to cram too many ideas into a single song. Take for instance the ‘60s-strut of winning single Respect, or the gentle respite offered by No Reptilesnear the end of the album. Throughout, frontman Jonathan Higgs continues his frenzied account of troubled modern times, but doesn’t get bogged down in angst like he did on the second half of the band’s previous album, 2013’s Arc. This time around, there’s a lighter touch to Higgs’ lyrics, but they’re still caught in the same denseness. Although Get To Heaven is occasionally too eager to please, it’s definitely Everything Everything’s finest recording to date.
BY CHRIS GIRDLER
