Every once in a while an album comes along which is just so damn good you could listen to it all day, every day. And right now that is how I feel about ‘Leaving Through The Window’. This is an album you cannot pigeonhole – it’s not punk, rock, pop, alternative – it’s just damn good.
Here are five young musicians that have the world at their feet, playing songs that can only be described as anthems. There’s sweeping hooks, gorgeous melodies and some beautiful lyrics. And perhaps their greatest moment of all, ‘Konstantine’, didn’t even make the cut. What Something Corporate have is talent in abundance and even with the odd momentary lapse, this album showcases their immense talent.
‘I Want To Save You’ is superb, proving that mainman Andrew McMahon has a great voice and the use of the piano adds something a little different. It’s power-pop at it’s very best, with huge hummable choruses. The edgier ‘Punk Rock Princess’ is an absolute standout, a gem of a track that fuses all kinds of influences but still comes out smelling of roses. The production is immense with instruments flying out of your speakers from all directions. But this is the kind of record that benefits from such a ‘big’ sound. Ditto ‘I Woke Up In A Car’ with its memorable melody and wonderfully thick sound. And it’s as catchy as a catchy thing.
‘If U C Jordan’ has so far been SoCo’s biggest hit and it’s not that hard to see why. But it’s possibly the band at their dumbest too, not the reflective and introspective band that performed the previous three songs. But if you want to hear songs that burrow into your brain and refuse to budge for a month, then this will do the trick. ‘The Astronaut’ mellows out a notch, focusing more on the piano, showing that quiet could really be the new loud, whilst ‘Hurricane’ is another gem, with crunching guitars piercing McMahon’s vocals. The word anthem is over-used… but not in this case.
‘Cavanaugh Park‘ is stunning, with the strings bringing the piano to the fore. It’s so simple, yet so moving. ‘Fall’ is another classic, whilst ‘Straw Dog’ gets better as the song goes on, but is still one of the weaker tracks here, although that is doing it a slight disservice. ‘Good News’ is another good song, although slighty less solid than some of the others. So it’s ironic that the silly lyrical topic addressed in ‘Drunk Girl’ ups the quality yet again. “I kissed a drunk girl, I kissed a drunk girl yes I did,” Andrew sings with gusto, and it’s another example of singalong power-pop of the highest proportions. Although maybe not at its most intelligent.
‘Not What It Seems’ is good but again not as great as some of its counterparts, although it does possess a hell of a chorus, a trait SoCo seem to have mastered at such a young age. ‘You’re Gone’ echoes that with a sound that belittles their youth, swapping the usual buzzsaw guitars and youthful exuberance for a refined sound that oozes experience. And the closing ‘Globes and Maps’ is as mellow and relaxed as it gets, just Andrew McMahon, his piano and a guitar. It’s touching, almost epic. A fitting end to a glorious album.
To be critical ‘Leaving Through The Window’ is perhaps a little bit long, weighing in at a hefty 58 minutes. But overall this is a ‘grand’ album which has all the trappings of a classic. The big production, the songs – everything about this record feels right. Forget my bias towards Drive Thru Records (which doesn’t exist people), this is quite simply a great album. It’s all about the songs. Listen and love it.
Paul