The Enemy - 'No Time For Tears'
Hey, this isn't fair, the Enemy! You can't go stuffing your new song with an entirely new list of things which are always cool in music, just as we'd started to get to a definitive collection of our own. You're going to throw our calibrations out of whack, and may even cause a fatal conflict of interest in the ChartBlog Reviewatron (version 2.1), resulting in total software failure and a cloud of eggy smoke.
For the record, the list we had so far included handclaps, whistling, trumpets, tambourines, maracas, and lyrics which include the line "if memory serves". It did not include backwards instruments, looped bass (one bar, preferably), or getting a female soul/gospel singer to wail in an encouraging fashion, about halfway through. And now, with the arrival of this song, we're all just starting to realise that it should have, as these are all very good ideas indeed.
Break open the spanner cupboard, Dr Perkins, it's time to operate.
(. This club's VIP area is a bit sweaty, innit?)
Of course, the Enemy being the Enemy, it's kind of hard to credit them with anything other than immaculate taste when it comes to pinching good ideas, as, to be frank, that's just about the only thing they have to show for all of their hard work to date. They're lineage chasers, which means they know they're good because the bands they purloin their best musical tricks off are good.
Or to put it into schoolyard terms, they think they're hard because their dad is hard. What are you gonna do about it? Hmm?
So, while it's entirely appropriate to give the little mites a pat on the head for releasing a song which does not sound like the Jam, it doesn't mean their revolution in sound is an astonishing thing in and of itself. It's just kind of nice, y'know? Always good to hear those classic ideas dusted down again and given a once-over with a wet wipe. Tom Clarke is as emotionally committed as always, and it's going to go down a storm on their live dates, especially if they're playing along to pre-recorded samples of the impossible-to-recreate-live bits.
Now, does anyone have a spare psych-e-diode for the Reviewatron? Ours has burnt itself out.
Download: Out now
CD Released: April 13th
³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ Music page
(Fraser McAlpine)
Comment number 1.
At 9th Apr 2009, catman231 wrote:Sounds way to much like Guns n Roses, I keep expecting to hear 'Paradise city' halfway through the song
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Comment number 2.
At 9th Apr 2009, spirit wrote:To quote
"Its hard to credit THE ENEMY with anything other than immaculate taste when it comes to pinching good ideas.... thats the only thing they have to show for all their hard work to date "
Er no... they are the only band from COVENTRY to have a NUMBER 1 ALBUM with WE'LL LIVE AND DIE IN THEST TOWNS...... which so far has gone DOUBLE PLATINUM.
2 TOP TEN SINGLES AWAY FROM HERE and HAD ENOUGH...... other hits including YOU ARE NOT ALONE... THE TITLE TRACK and THIS SONG IS ABOUT YOU.
So their sound is influenced by THE JAM .....so what ? THE JAM were influenced by THE SMALL FACES and many other 60'S acts... every song is derivative.
What stands THE ENEMY out from many other bands is their ear for a tune and the killer hook in a song... every track on WE'LL LIVE AND DIE is a gem.
I was unsure as to their true worth until I saw them live......... every single song was sang by the entire crowd who were clearly enjoying themselves.... it was breathtaking ! The connection between band and audience was amazin.
You will have toget used to it.... a lot of people like them... and they connect with their audience....
EVERY single reviewed by RADIO 1 is influenced by the past the yeah yeah yeahs ZERO ( HOWEVER GOOD IT IS !) is reminiscent of PET SHOP BOYS at their HI NRG finest and BLONDIE in their disco pomp.
The thing is.... IT IS NOW 2009 and a lot of people just want to enjoy music . ( Some of my older friends will not give new music a chance because they keep saying it sounds like a band of their youth )
IT IS 2009 !
THE ENEMY release songs that connect with a lot of people today.
NO TIME FOR TEARS will be a TOP 20 single.
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Comment number 3.
At 9th Apr 2009, Fraser McAlpine - wrote:What time did you say it was? Ten past eight? ;-)
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Comment number 4.
At 14th Apr 2009, BloggingLiam wrote:They re-created it well live. The crowd provided the backing and they had a guest vocalist for the woman's parts!
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Comment number 5.
At 15th Apr 2009, spirit wrote:Can't agree with you more LIAM....... THE ENEMY are a fantastic live act.... thats another thing to credit them for !
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Comment number 6.
At 19th Apr 2009, spirit wrote:THERE ! TOP 20 HIT !
NO TIME FOR TEARS IN AT NUMBER 16 !
Please no more condascending ,pompous ,patronising, poisonous ,self -righteous ,uninformative reviews like the one above.
So you don't like a band.... let someone review the song who can see the big picture and offer information , pros and cons and value a band for their achievements.
On meeting THE ENEMY I have utmost respect for their progress and where they are heading. They are three top lads.
Their live act is very powerful with great anthemic songs at the foundation.
Another top 20 hit Tom !
Keep up the hard work.
MUSIC FOR THE PEOPLE out soon !
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Comment number 7.
At 19th Apr 2009, Fraser McAlpine - wrote:Mr Warrior, your passion for the music you like does you credit. However, I think you occasionally mis-read some of the things that have been said on this blog.
Might I suggest you calm down a bit? A good night's sleep works wonders!
Kind regards
Fraser
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Comment number 8.
At 20th Apr 2009, spirit wrote:I love sleeping..... andd I love passion......... two great things.... and we all need them in our lives...
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Comment number 9.
At 20th Apr 2009, Rubz94 wrote:seriously, this review is RIDICULAS! of course they sound like other bands! and the bands they sound like sounded like bands before them! the fact is the enemy are an amazing band, especially live.
and about the chorus having no good hooks? i went to see them and i hadnt heard it yet, but i couldnt get the tune out of my head for days!!
The first time i saw them was at glastonbury, and i hadnt even heard of them, but they were so good live they converted me there and then into a HUGE fan.
they are really nice lads aswell and im glad there single is doing so well as it is a top tune from a top band!
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Comment number 10.
At 20th Apr 2009, Fraser McAlpine - wrote:OK, so I say:
"they know they're good because the bands they purloin their best musical tricks off are good"
and you say that's wrong. And then you say:
"of course they sound like other bands! and the bands they sound like sounded like bands before them!"
And that's different, is it? If anything, my version is nicer about the Enemy than yours is!
Most of the review is about how good the ideas they're re-using are. And then I end by saying it'll be a great song live. Nobody said anything about the chorus at all.
So, what's your point?
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Comment number 11.
At 21st Apr 2009, spirit wrote:I am suitably well rested and feel I can understand Rubz point.
In my experience of music, life and blogs.... music can evoke many emotions in people.... some bands mean an awful lot to people because they can relate to the emotions in a song and from an angle it is written.
Indeed certain songs and bands can help us through the most difficult times of our lives when we feel alone , dis-illusioned or mis-understood.
Music can have great power and to some people certain bands can be captivating and lead us to a more positive place, physically , emotionally , spiritually or mentally.
I am sure to some... The Enemy can evoke such feelings.
In fact being at many of their gigs... this is certain.
Taking this on board and realising that many intelligent people read reviews and can perceive the angle of how a review is written , it appears it is totally natural having read the above review that strong feelings of resentment towards it can be felt. There are numerous lines that cause the reader to become angry because of the way it is written, .... I am told by many it is the last 16 lines down from "here's the video " that causes the most friction.
It is written in such a way that basically encourages a strong adverse reaction from anyone who likes The Enemy... or anyone who likes fair play ! ... so it is natural for people to feel aggrieved. I did... but moved on now.
Anyway off to bed... big day tomorrow.
p.s this site is one of the best music sites around... would't swap it for anything.
kind regards
Spirit.
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Comment number 12.
At 21st Apr 2009, HazelChartblog wrote:Blimey, Spirit. Good job you haven't seen my thoughts on The Enemy.
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Comment number 13.
At 21st Apr 2009, spirit wrote:Oh Hazel you tease ! lol
Come on let's hear them........ if "Head Shoulders Kneez and Toez " can get nearly 50 comments......... we all have a lot of serious blogging to do.
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Comment number 14.
At 21st Apr 2009, spirit wrote:And respect to you Liam .... you have seen the Enemy live... what are your thoughts ?
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Comment number 15.
At 21st Apr 2009, Fraser McAlpine - wrote:Without meaning to fire anything up again...
The NME is reporting a mixed reception to the new Enemy album, from actual fans and part of the problem seems to be that some of the songs sound like other songs from the past.
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Comment number 16.
At 22nd Apr 2009, spirit wrote:Yeah I know the guy who did the review and gave the album 5 out of 10...... he is very disappointed with it... but he only played it twice !!
He loved the first one immensely but feels they have stretched too far and lost the essence of what made them great... the actual songs.
Although I really like Sing when you're in love... and I will push for this to be the next single.
It was your take in your review that they had basically achieved nothing in their career and the general dismissal of them running thru the review that is so inflammative.
And you singled them out for stealing other bands ideas when you could do that for every other song you review... but only do this for The Enemy. That was not fair... but you probably know that.
Anyway after reading your Pink review I have decided to move on.....
How can I stay mad with a man who admits to wearing a velvet housecoat with a silk sash as a belt. ...... whilst spilling "cornflake milk " all over his computor screen whilst looking at Pink videos ? !!
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Comment number 17.
At 23rd Apr 2009, Rubz94 wrote:ok, fair enough, i made my point quite badly, but its only because i LOVE this song and the enemy, and the chorus thing was in reply to a comment but it seems to have disapeared now.
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Comment number 18.
At 23rd Apr 2009, Fraser McAlpine - wrote:I take both of your points, and I'm glad you came back, Rubz. I'm really pleased you love the Enemy and this song. It would be amazing for me if I felt the same, I wish I did, and I'm not just saying that.
My problem - and this is what I was saying in the review - is that if you're going to take inspiration from the past - and Spirit's quite right, everyone does it - you've got to bring something of your own to it, so that it becomes yours.
For a lot of people, the Enemy's youth and mouthy demeanour, and yes, brilliant live act, is what makes it theirs. For me, that's not enough, I wanted to hear actual fresh ideas in there too.
I also think there's been a confusion about what I meant by "that's just about the only thing they have to show for all of their hard work to date", in the review.
I was saying they've not yet done anything musically better than the Jam or the Specials or Oasis, a benchmark they've set for themselves by being so obviously inspired by these bands. And yes, that's a value judgement. I didn't mean to pass comment on their success or their fans at all.
PS: The cornflake milk is all too real. It's the housecoat that's a euphamism. It's actually a suit of armour.
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Comment number 19.
At 23rd Apr 2009, BloggingLiam wrote:Well Ill weigh in with some opinions then!
"And respect to you Liam .... you have seen the Enemy live... what are your thoughts ?"
Was a fantastic gig. I saw them at Reading music fesitval last year and enjoyed them (one of the best reactions of a crowd I saw ALL weekend was to 'Away from here', which they opened with), but they were much better when I saw them at my "local" academy. They only played 3 new songs (inc no Time for Tears, which translated brilliantly to the live stage). The venue of course helps this.
The atmosphere was great at the gig, they didnt talk a great deal but they didnt need to, the music did the talking. The warm up acts were average (twisted Wheel were ok) so when the 3 of them came on it made their act seem so much more profrssional. Their playing had a real energy. Sadly I lost my phone 5 songs in putting a bit of a damper on the gig.
The Enemy as a band are playing the the kind of teritory where they will always be compared to bands before them. The Jam and Oasis are the obvious ones to compare them too. I personally have never seem them as particuarly revolutionary and Im not expecting brilliant things from the latest album, I suspect that theres only sooooo many songs they have got in them.
No Time for Tears does give me hope as I think its a great song. I'd give it 4 stars, but certainly not 5. We'll live and die in these towns, Away from here and Had Enough are 5 star songs (probably a couple more on the album). The problem is, when I first heard this song, my immediate thought was "they are trying to create a rousing anthem with this song". Perhaps they are trying too hard and have fallen too far from the mark in many people's eyes. I doubt they will ever match Away from Here in my eyes.
As a big The Enemy fan, Im pretty much in agreement with Fraser.
Ill probably return to this on listening to the album.
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Comment number 20.
At 24th Apr 2009, CurtainJerker wrote:Excellent. I'm glad we've sorted that out.
Now, who likes the Ironik song?
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Comment number 21.
At 25th Apr 2009, spirit wrote:Just to echo Liams point... I think the main things the Enemy have brought so far is a load of five star songs on " We''ll live and die in these towns "
That is very important.. the quality of songs !
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