album of the week: 1.1

Elbow

The Seldom Seen Kid (Live At Abbey Road)

Fiction Records (2009)

why you'll love it: and even better version of a great album

why you'll hate it: only if you flat out hate the band

We're starting off 2010 with some leftovers while the new stuff seeps in... First off is a live rendition of Elbow's much praised 2008 album - The Seldom Seen Kid. This isn't the kind of live release where you'll hear lots of improvisations and changes in the songs. The songs are instead enhanced by the talented BBC orchestra and choir. So if you hated The Seldom Seen Kid first time around, this won't do much for you. If you loved it or were at least on the fence, this will surely win you over.

The orchestra is amazing. The opening blasts of sound in "Sarlings" will still make you jump, and with a full orchestra, maybe even make you yelp a bit. I've never heard an instrumentally performed live event sound so true to its studio counterpart. Big applause for the BBC orchestra, and to Elbow as well.

And Guy Garvey's voice, holy cow... I'm not the kind of guy who looks for, or usually enjoys a "good" sounding voice. I enjoy human flaws, and most vocals that go off into the borderlands of tolerability. But I just cannot believe how perfectly Guy pipes out every note. It's stunning.

Still, this is basically just The Seldom Seen Kid. With all of the same strengths and flaws; only with a beyond incredible production value and a "dude, this is all live!" exclamation provided by the you, the listener.