Sit back, make yourself a cuppa and turn up your headphones. You are about to experience something very special. It’s not often you get the delight of finding an artist who captures youthful nostalgia and whimsy in the least ‘twee’ way possible, but WE SHOW UP ON RADAR does so flawlessly in debut album ‘Sadness Defeated’. Seeking influences from poetry, folk tales and Andy Wright’s imagination, WE SHOW UP ON RADAR’s ambient melodic folk takes you into a musical fairy tale, spinning songs of human fragility to ones about corn.
The project of multi-instrumentalist and producer Andy Wright, ‘Sadness Defeated’ is eleven tracks of grown-up nursery rhymes, or at least that’s what he’d have you initially believe. Whilst tracks such as ‘Celadora’, ‘It Should Be You and Me’ and ‘Where is my Love (In the Arms of Billy Crystal)’ harness the brassy hooks and lilting vocals of kitschy folk-pop, these sugary-sweet melodies are neatly juxtaposed against somewhat sinister lyrics. Compliment these with Andy’s whispering, almost haunting voice and you have something quite remarkable. Personal standout track ‘I’ll be a Ghost’ is reminiscent of a prettier, more delicate Radiohead. Drenched in melancholy and desire, the lovelorn lyrics (‘I’m slightly out of focus, in the corner of a photo, that you took years ago’) and ethereal accompaniment make for something completely intoxicating. Wright wraps up the album in a confident, if unexpected, manner with ‘Hands Up If You’re Lost’, a powerful and heavy finale that seems to come from nowhere yet is entirely welcome.
Like the lovechild of The Flaming Lips and Bright Eyes that has been raised by Mercury Rev on a diet of stories by The Brothers Grimm, ‘Sadness Defeated’ is for anyone who loves fanciful nostalgia with a sinister twist. A stunning debut brimming with potential hits, there is no doubt WE SHOW UP ON RADAR will be showing up on people’s radars soon enough (sorry about the pun, had to be done).
Yours in Love of New Music,
Maddie Hammond X
#spreadthelove
