La Petite Mort

Product Information

James were once very serious about being original. In the liner notes for the Mancunian band’s 1998 compilation James: The Best of, lead singer Tim Booth said of any song they wrote together in the early days, “If it sounded like any other band we’d throw it out.” Since those early days, James has honed a style that sounds like no one else. With Booth’s soaring voice, big clean guitars, trumpet, violin and vast songs with choruses wide enough to be heard from space, how could they sound like anyone else? And to put another rhetorical question to you, how long can a band like James get away with sounding Jamesque?

So what can we expect? Well that ever so familiar vocal of Tim Booth, that we all know and love is just as strong and distinct as it always was, but the wrapping upon which it lies is somewhat cleaner, shinier and dancier. James work on alternative versions to allow singer to grieve at gigs". The Express. 29 July 2014. Archived from the original on 29 July 2014 . Retrieved 25 May 2020.a b "Live archive: 2013". James. Archived from the original on 5 April 2019 . Retrieved 25 May 2020.

Another beautiful and poignant song, Bitter Virtue – about the hypocrisy of women chastised by certain religions for expressing their sexuality – features the most magnificent harmonies that belie the theme. I guess it’s only a band like James that would dare try to get away which such a dichotomy.

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Moving On - Single by James". iTunes. Archived from the original on 23 May 2020 . Retrieved 24 May 2020. a b c Goodwyn, Tom (29 May 2014). " 'The album is very uplifting, but death is the defining theme' – hmv.com talks to James…". HMV. Archived from the original on 2 January 2019 . Retrieved 12 June 2022. a b c d e f g h i j k Valish, Frank (1 October 2014). "James Frontman Tim Booth Discusses Life, Death, and the Band's New Album "La Petite Mort" ". Under the Radar. Archived from the original on 26 October 2019 . Retrieved 25 May 2020.

There are a couple of numbers that don’t sit overly well within the album. Curse Curse is an attempt to shift focus to electro trance-pop, and it doesn’t really come off. Instead, it sounds like a group of slightly elder gentlemen who have just discovered the synthesizer after returning from a week in Ibiza, secretly misled they hadn’t stayed longer. Gone Baby Gone is another attempt at a move into different territory, however it’s just a little underwhelming, though nothing a catchy chorus cant help out with. Walshe, John (14 July 2014). "James - La Petite Mort". Hot Press. Archived from the original on 25 May 2020 . Retrieved 25 May 2020.

Brown, David (5 May 2014). "James Announce La Petite Mort Tour Dates And Release Moving On Video". Louder Than War. Archived from the original on 29 May 2020 . Retrieved 29 May 2020. Brown, David (20 March 2013). "Tim Booth of James releases new live solo video". Louder Than War. Archived from the original on 29 May 2020 . Retrieved 29 May 2020. A solid return from James with perhaps their best "pop" LP since Whiplash or Millionaires. Producer Max Dingel gives the band's sound a slightly commercial makeover with singles Frozen Britain, Moving On and Curse Curse arriving instantly in a flurry of addictive and fully-formed noise. There is little "fat" on the songs here with even the 7 minute opener Walk Like You utilising every second of its duration nicely. Moving On in particular is one of their finest singles to date and sits comfortably alongside the more established James hits. The second half of the album slows the tempo down a bit beginning with the darker Interrogation and the introspective Bitter Virtue. The piano led songs towards the end return the listener to more familiar James territory which is a nice way to round off proceedings. Manchester's finest make a welcome return with La Petite Mort, their first full-length studio album since 2008’s critically acclaimed Hey Ma. Brown, David (10 February 2013). "Larry Gott – interview – James guitarist speaks to Louder Than War". Louder Than War. Archived from the original on 29 May 2020 . Retrieved 29 May 2020.