★★☆☆☆
Two Stars
I was staying in the Castello district of Venice with a very friendly Italian man named Nicola when Simple Minds first surfaced in my musical consciousness. In between Nicola’s breathless stories of Venetian life he would recount at length the time that Simple Minds’ frontman Jim Kerr visited him — complete with excited gesticulations at the photo of them together on the hotel wall.
Other, admittedly older, couples nodded with enthusiasm whilst we wore rather confused expressions and shot each other “who are Simple Minds?” looks. This anecdote sums up the Glaswegian group: successful in the ‘80s, somewhat irrelevant today.
Nonetheless, I was willing new album Big Music to be good, I really was. Each track opens strongly, raising expectations. But the songs then quickly fade into the lyrically corny choruses, barely distinguishable from the lacklustre verses into which the bold intros soon descend. In some of the more forgettable tracks, ‘Blindfolded’ and ‘Broken Glass Park’ in particular, the steady descent into banality as the songs progress means I can’t help wishing that Kerr would keep quiet and allow the promise of the opening musical atmosphere to be followed through without him.
A lack of any exciting or frankly noticeable change from verse to chorus permeates the album. This bestows a jaded air upon the album, reinforcing the reminder of Simple Minds’ fading fame, ironically much like an old pair of ‘80s jeans. Big Music is imbued with distinctly ‘80s sounding vibes, but the attempts by Simple Minds to half-modernise their sound leaves it feeling awkwardly flat. Indeed, it is when the pretentious electronics are abandoned in favour of more punchy synths and prominent guitar that the album takes an exciting turn.
This is evident in ‘Imagination’, a song whose layers add the extra complexity which bestows more personality to the record than the earlier attempts which are much more reliant upon stripped back electronica and husky vocals. Similarly, ‘Concrete and Cherry Blossom’ works due to its more rock-oriented sound. It is almost as if Simple Minds have some good ideas, but lack the tools necessary to bring them to life, suffocating them early on with characterless and unoriginal musical tropes.
Big Music isn’t big, but then again, it isn’t bad either. It feels trapped between the unadulterated ‘80s character of their biggest hit ‘Don’t You Forget About Me’ and the modern sound that the band are striving towards. A contribution recommended to anyone with indiscriminate taste and a passion for ‘80s revival.
