There will always be the myth of the ‘difficult second
album’ for any band, regardless of any first album success. Mumford & Sons can’t escape this, needing
a show-stopping second album to follow a debut album that went 4 times Platinum
in the UK and achieved the Brit Award for Best British Album in 2011. No pressure then.
From the opening notes of Babel, the powerful and bold opening track as well as the album title, it’s pleasing to hear they haven’t lost their folk charm. That’s not to say their music hasn’t progressed, as their time in Tennessee seems to have influenced them and given a different edge to their well-recognised folk style. I Will Wait, the first single to come from Babel, has already proved to be a hit, with the infectious “I will wait, I will wait for you” hook that begs to be sung by the festival crowds. Broken Crown echoes the theatrical and dark point in Sigh No More, giving Babel the variety it needs to match the success of their debut.
But it’s not all fast, live-inspired tracks. There are moments where the album slows right down, and an offering of peace is given. Ghosts That We Knew is a chance to sit back and reflect for five minutes, and admire how good Mumford & Sons really are as both musicians and songwriters, as Marcus Mumford pleas “just promise me we’ll be alright.” Babel hits an even better note, when these slower tracks are combined with the energy of I Will Wait to create something like Lover’s Eyes, that builds to a triumphant and riling climax.
More ambitious and transatlantic writing and recording sessions, as well as the introduction of the 10 song game during recording, where each band member has to write 10 songs in a certain time period, has led to Babel. The result is a bigger album, with more instruments and a slightly less polished sound. Although Babel doesn’t offer anything particularly new or outrageously different than we’d expect, there’s no denying the band have progressed, and that this is a great album, from the opening energy Babel down to the closing calmness of Not With Haste.
4/5
From the opening notes of Babel, the powerful and bold opening track as well as the album title, it’s pleasing to hear they haven’t lost their folk charm. That’s not to say their music hasn’t progressed, as their time in Tennessee seems to have influenced them and given a different edge to their well-recognised folk style. I Will Wait, the first single to come from Babel, has already proved to be a hit, with the infectious “I will wait, I will wait for you” hook that begs to be sung by the festival crowds. Broken Crown echoes the theatrical and dark point in Sigh No More, giving Babel the variety it needs to match the success of their debut.
But it’s not all fast, live-inspired tracks. There are moments where the album slows right down, and an offering of peace is given. Ghosts That We Knew is a chance to sit back and reflect for five minutes, and admire how good Mumford & Sons really are as both musicians and songwriters, as Marcus Mumford pleas “just promise me we’ll be alright.” Babel hits an even better note, when these slower tracks are combined with the energy of I Will Wait to create something like Lover’s Eyes, that builds to a triumphant and riling climax.
More ambitious and transatlantic writing and recording sessions, as well as the introduction of the 10 song game during recording, where each band member has to write 10 songs in a certain time period, has led to Babel. The result is a bigger album, with more instruments and a slightly less polished sound. Although Babel doesn’t offer anything particularly new or outrageously different than we’d expect, there’s no denying the band have progressed, and that this is a great album, from the opening energy Babel down to the closing calmness of Not With Haste.
4/5
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