The Fratellis - Eyes Wide, Tongue Tied
- Written by Zoe Wallbank
The Fratellis are back with their new album Eyes Wide, Tongue Tied, out 21st August, it’s a fun and catchy album that still has an edge.
The opening track ‘Me And The Devil’ perfectly sets up the tone for the album with an upbeat guitar melody and catchy lyrics such as ”I’m gonna sell this soul of mine”, which is repeated throughout the song.
The album flows so well yet mixes different genres to keep the album, and each track, new and exciting. An old school rock influence can be heard on a number of tracks, including: ‘Baby Don’t You Lie To Me!’, ‘Rosanna’ and ‘Getting Surreal’. It feels vintage yet new, they make the style their own and it’s carried well by the amazing lyrics such as “throw me your sins and I’ll keep them with mine” from ‘Getting Surreal’.
In contrast, there are hints of techno in a lot of tracks including: ‘Thief’, ‘Dogtown’ and ‘Too Much Wine’. ‘Thief’ has a subtly techno-inspired beat which matches the lyric’s speed and pattern perfectly, giving this rock song an edge, and keeping the album exciting although it’s very similar to ‘Dogtown’. ‘Too Much Wine’ is as tongue and cheek as the title suggests, with a funky guitar beat and fun lyrics such as “’til my heart stops beating I’ll be drinking too much wine.” Track two, ‘Impostors (Little By Little)’, even has a hint of country in its beat.
Despite the entire album being very fun and catchy, it still contains some slower songs such as ‘Desperate Guy’, which is slower yet, still remains upbeat. In addition, ‘Slow’ is as the title may suggest, a slow track which contains some honest and emotional lyrics such as: “If you’ve got to leave me baby why don’t you do it slow.”
Similarly, the closing track ‘Moonshine’ is a slower track, which nicely brings the album to a gentle closing rather than simply ending the album, and fits in with the other tracks by having an old rock influence and emotional lyrics such as: “My future’s on its knees.”