Chosen by: Ben
Comments -
Ben: bc camplight - I think I struck gold with this one. The melodies are great, the instrumentation is interesting as are his voice and the lyrics, with a pinch of humour- i dont care for david bowie, what a card! the 2 legged dog duet is very enjoyable. shades of arcade fire, especially towards the end of the tent. my niggles are that some of the bridges are a bit harsh when compared with the lovely melodies, but I guess this is purposely to create interest?
Also the last couple of tracks are a little slow paced and dont quite hit the same note for me as the rest of the album. However I read that the album is (amongst other stuff) supposed to be dealing with a case of childhood abuse he experienced so I guess a bit of downbeat stuff is to be expected (sorry to sound clumsy). These niggles are not enough to stop me giving it a star though! ⭐️
Paul: Ben has a knack of finding these excellent singer/songwriters. Spektor, Hawk, Dawson and now Camplight.
After the slightly odd introduction this seemed a fairly standard (if good) pop record for about 90 seconds but the dark brief emphasis on the words "the tent" set up this up to be so much more. As Ben has pointed out the inspiration behind the making of this record I think we know why the darkness is there.
It's lyrically clever without trying too hard. (Take A Sober Conversation where he confesses that he doesn't like David Bowie and later in the song is instructed - 'Let's Dance!' Chef's kiss.)
His voice plays fantastically with whichever type of music he chooses to convey his feelings throughout the album. Abigail Morris is a super choice for the duets too.
The intensity of that section of 'Tent' comes back in 'Where You Taking My Baby' and 'Rock Gently in Disorder'. Are we in metaphor territory? Everything's going along just fine until it isn't?
Everything's more than fine with this album. It's a gem. ⭐️
Dean: Elusive and evocative. Yet it's the last track, Leaving Camp Four Oaks, which actually gives meaning and substance to the album. It gives a dizzying emptiness to a school boy's journey home from a traumatic trip. It's a wonderful, piano loaded emotional trip from an artist who it seems has turned teenage tragedy into an identity.
I'm not sure that's healthy but it certainly brings commitment and energy to the project. I'm giving it a 🌟, not because I find it encouraging or even cathartic, but because this persistent pursuit of martyrdom? has produced some beautiful, emotive music. It has caused both consternation and admiration.
Stu: Played BC again today it’s a bloody big star 🌟 I buying the vinyl straight away
So many great melodies and some absolutely cracking lyrics!! Too many to mention but an absolute joy from the start to the finish.
ome truly lovely piano and soft brushwork on the drums! What gets me joked is there’s a bloody awesome melody underlying every track!!! But the most impressive thing is the lyrics!! So so many to mention!! “I wonder if my shoes are as cool as the other kids” THE TENT, “why you still on the ground? I’m not a f-ng bird” TWO LEGGED DOG, threw my Christmas Tree out on Dec 23 because it doesn’t matter!” “But now I’m having dreams that I’m stuck in the trees and John Cleese is chasing me around” “OK don’t tell anyone I don’t care for David Bowie. There’s a time for joking he said” “boys like me feel it all” “I punched the gas and my hairpiece flew off”
This is such an amazing track I’ve played it dozens of times, one of my favourite of the year indeed!!!
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