Album Review: Kodaline – Coming Up For Air
3 min read
Irish indie/rock group Kodaline are at it again, it’s been just over a year and a half since the release of their debut studio album In A Perfect World and we’ve been itching for more; as if hearing tracks such as All I Want all over radio and television wasn’t enough, the boys have just released their sophomore effort Coming Up For Air this week and it’s all very exciting, we can’t wait to hear how or if the band’s sound has evolved over the last few months.
With a boom the album kicks off with first promotional single Honest, a track that carries the torch of this sound that you’ll dig like crazy; honestly, the song could sound like an edgier Maroon 5, but better. The One has a heart-warming ambience to it, from the smooth and airy vocal and the subtle beat throughout its verses, right through to the slightly punchier chorus; the percussive introduction to Autopilot is cute, what the instruments get up to in this song really get you. The album shows its more upbeat side with Human Again, the synths and keys create this sharpness that sparks up an addiction to the song’s vibe, now this is indie rock at its finest; second promotional track Unclear is backed by an arrangement that resounds in mystery, as it progresses to the chorus you are listening without loss of attention. There is something refreshing about the sound you’ll love from Coming Alive, it’s great to hear and experience such energy coming from a group and their music; Lost is delivered masterfully with a strong and soulful vocal, plus its crescendo of a first verse launches into a punchy chorus.
Ready has one of the catchiest melodies on the album, it’s steady but persistent beat has you nodding your head in no time, plus you can’t help but sing along to the chorus; it’s refreshing to hear the acoustic guitar carry the ballad Better, even when the rest of the arrangement kicks in you still connect with the track. The keyboard is played gorgeously throughout Everything Works Out In The End, singer Steve Garrigan could easily be channeling Coldplay’s Chris Martin, his voice is hauntingly beautiful in this number; Play The Game grabs your attention from its first millisecond, its beat is so fun and edgy and is hands down an album highlight. Piano ballad Love Will Set You Free is a beautifully delivered track, Garrigan again sounds influenced by M5’s Adam Levine, but you would flaunt your voice in that way if you had the talent to do so; Caught In The Middle is more subtle, it’s not as memorable as its predecessors though. War proves to be another decent ballad from the boys, and Moving On is that heart wrenching number that gets you going; the album ends on an acoustic version of Honest, which is just as enticing as the album version.
Coming Up For Air is almost a definition of beauty, or an example of fine art, Kodaline have really outdone themselves with this release; the majority of the songs are exciting in different ways, whether that be the energy that resides in the more upbeat numbers, or the wondrous atmosphere of the raw and beautiful piano ballads. Another plus about this album is that it consists of sixteen tracks, and it barely sounded exhausted or dragged out; Coming Up For Air is a dazzling release, Kodaline should be very proud of this record.
