Frightened Rabbit - The Winter Of Mixed Drinks

A couple of years ago, A British band called Elbow released an album called "The Seldom Seen Kid" and I found myself in the unenviable position of trying to give a great review to an album, while relating it to a bunch of shit that I totally hate. I am confronted with the same issue here.

A Scottish band this time, although I do hate their name just as much. At its core, I had said that Elbow could have been any band from Manchester. Coldplay for example, but produced themselves to greatness. The Rabbit is similar in that vain. They could have strummed some acoustic guitars to the same songs and found some audience to help them sing along. And I would have rated them two stars lower.

Peter Katis produced, who has also laid down Interpol and the National. So I would not have expected greatness from this guy. But maybe the band just want to pull their own weight. While Katis does employ some orchestration and horn arrangements outside of the rock band, it sounds like he recorded them all after some drunken row at a Scottish pub. There's teeth and swagger to the arragements that's outside of his other artists otherwise "clean" output.

The Rabbit, I would compare something closer to early U2. Leader Scott Hutchinson is one Bono-like optimistic dude. He describes his hardships, his loves lost. But he always describes them at his back.

"Let's call me a baptist, call this a drowning of the past
She is there on the shoreline throwing stones at my back"
- Swim Until You Can't See Land

So this writer found the album quite lyrically sound. They're never lazy or trite. And it probably lends some authenticity that he sings with a native Scottish accent. And while Muse may easily declare their victorious intentions, Scott; who works just as hard to achieve the victory- works even harder to describe the journey.

So the hymns that I sung
Prayers for the fucked, from a bitter, forked tongue
Sing of history now
Though the corners are lit
The dark can return with the flick of a switch
It hasn't turned on me yet, yet
- Not Miserable

Exciting, inspiring, let's get drinking. (4 of 5 stars)