Well, whoever writes the lyrics for Noah and the Whale is clearly over his break-up. With its last album, “The First Days of Spring,” Noah and the Whale took listeners for a trip through what could only be described as one of the most epic and earth shattering break-ups of all time. The album was largely morose, mostly lonely and only a little bit hopeful.
Fast forward to now and throw on a big smile, because that’s exactly what Noah and the Whale has done in the most recent album of their brilliant discography. The album is called “Last Night on Earth” and is about 45 minutes of happiness, determination and hope.
The attitude of the songs is not the only thing that has seen some major changes for this album. Longtime fans of the band will remember the sparse (mostly acoustic) instrumentation of its previous work. Though those elements do show up occasionally in “Last Night on Earth,” this album is considerably bigger.
The sound is more polished down to the baritone vocals, and there is considerably more going on in terms of different sound effects. The largest addition is a series of electronic sound effects. In fact, this album at time treads the line between indie rock and electro-pop.
For some, that may be a warning sign. The band is careful, however, and is able to use the electronic sounds as an accent as opposed to leaning too much on the synthesizers. All in all, it just makes the album that much happier.
To reiterate, this album starts off happy and stays that way. The opening track, “Life is Life,” kicks things off with joyful piano, synthetic sounds and electronic beats. Behind this musical happiness is a set of lyrics all about the beauty and opportunity of starting over (possibly after a break-up or some other traumatic event in someone’s life).
This same feel continues through the next few songs, with the occasional help of background vocals by some very soulful ladies, before reaching a song called “Give It All Back.”
The song is by far my favorite on the album and starts off with a riff by a percussion instrument that, for lack of a better description, I would say sounds like seashells. Think “Under the Sea” minus the talking sea creatures and less steel drum. Not only is the music memorable, but the lyrics hit home even more so than the other lyrics on the album (which is saying a great deal).
The song is about nostalgia, and the frontman sings, “I’d give it all back just to do it again / Turn back time, be with my friends.” The message is one that all students branching out to new paths of their lives can relate to.
Next on this tour is “Just Me Before We Met,” another of my favorites on the album. It’s all about the story of a conversation a boyfriend has with his girlfriend while she is looking through an album of old photos (“Well, that’s just me before we met”). It’s a great variation on a love song and is one of the sweetest songs I’ve ever heard in my life.
After a few more top-notch songs including a beautiful instrumental interlude appropriately titled “Paradise Stars,” the listener reaches the final song on the album, called “Old Joy.” The song begins with music that is almost sad, but Noah and the Whale ups the ante soon, creating a song about resilience and living life to the fullest which includes the always-inspiring back-up vocals of a gospel choir and a set of lyrics featuring the line “Forget the things that get away / Don’t dream of yesterday.”
And with that, the album is over. Some purist fans may be concerned with the obvious presence of a producer in a studio (the occasional moments of endearing off-key singing of the previous two albums are, for the most part, gone) and the fact that the band experimented with some electro-pop sounds, but don’t be too alarmed.
This band knows what it’s doing, and just about every song on this album is executed extraordinarily well. The band is growing up and is clearly having a great time doing so. Through this album, Noah and the Whale urges the listener to live each day to the fullest. A great way to start any day is with this album, which will bring any listener out of just about any gutter.
E-mail Bain at abain@media.ucla.edu.