Search - South :: Adventures in the Underground Journey to the Stars

Adventures in the "Journey"

E. A Solinas | MD USA | 06/12/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"South is is one of those great bands that not enough people know about, with their sleepy mixture of downtempo and Britpop. It's a shame that a lot of people say, "Who?" when I mention them.



And their brilliant music continues in their third full-length album "Adventures in the Underground Journey to the Stars." They take tight melodies and solid songwriting, mix it up with some lush electronic backdrops, and produce some truly beautiful music. Yes, it really is that good.



The album opens with traffic, echoing footsteps, a train going by, and doors opening --probably the London tube. Then the drums kick in, a solid guitar riff blossoms out, and Joel Cadbury murmurs over a swirling melody: "Give in to love it's the one thing we have/Hold out your laugh see the beauty within/I know the way but you won't be the first/Don't mean there's no pain.... There must be more to love than this..."



It's a strong opener, and it leads in to a bunch of other really good songs. All types: expansive indie rock that commands "don't take yourself so seriously," electro-tinged rock'n'roll, and some swirling darker numbers that sound like a rainy night in a London park, just as the stars come out.



But the guys also explore some less-travelled musical territory. There's the twangy countryish "Know Yourself," and a couple songs have swirling, twinkly electronica. The album stays spellbinding right up through the finale, where Cadbury murmurs, "One thing after another/Safe in the knowledge that we are flesh and bone/As beautiful as the first day..."



South has only had two albums before this one, but with "Adventures in the Underground...," they reach new levels. These guys can tackle all sorts of music: moody indierock, lush shoegazer, swirly atmospherics, electronic-edged folkpop, and any imaginable blend of the above. And what's more, they can do it well.



If you stripped away the trappings and keyboards, the swirling guitars and solid basslines would still be there. The drumming is subtle and flexible, although sometimes the more prominent instruments make it hard to hear. Most impressively, keyboards and guitars actually seem to melt together until it's hard to tell just where one ends and the other begins, which adds to the dreaminess of it all.



Joel Cadbury's voice gets better with each album. At first he sounded kind of hesitant, and now he sounds smooth and confident enough to tackle the sadness, loneliness, and the love in these songs. "Sing my way through life/Fear it hides my smile/If eyes are windows too/the soul I see in you..." he croons over a driving rock rhythm.



With "Adventures in the Underground Journey to the Stars," South explores new territory while staying close to their electro-edged Britpop. An enchanting, bittersweet experience."

Has South gone "South"?

B. Forberger | 04/22/2006

(2 out of 5 stars)

"In purchasing this cd I was hoping that it would at least MATCH the shear feel and sonic intensity of their last album WITH THE TIDES, but for me, it just falls short.

The album does have it's moments, dont get me wrong, but sadly I dont enjoy this album as much as WITH THE TIDES, or even their first one.

These guys are a great band, and certainly proved it on their last album, and I do appreciate the attempt they made to stretch the boundaries of their sound, but I do believe what makes them great is their ability to craft huge, soaring ,melodies, and take me to another world with their music.

I have given this record more than a few listens, and just cant find it interesting, or even edgy like their last one. Hopefully the next cd revisits what made them great."

Big Dissapointment

B. White | 04/18/2006

(2 out of 5 stars)

"As finding their album "With The Tides" by mistake and getting an amazing-huge sounding album that would give most other britpop bands a run for their money, South has gone in the other direction and definately not for the better. Instead of crafting their moody atmospheric sound, they exchanged it for the more indie-pop trend that is exploding at the moment. Instead of what could have been another great album, they made a boring run of the mill soundtrack that blends in with 99% of the other bands out at the moment. What a surprise it was to me when I saw them in chicago sounding exactly the same as the other bands, sorry guys, go back to what you were excellent at doing on your first 2 records instead of trying to sell more..."