Declan Mckenna – ‘What Happened to the Beach?’ album review: optimistic singalongs that don’t meet the mark
THE SKINNY: When you know your way around a chorus like Declan Mckenna does, there has to be some temptation to continue pumping out singalongs and reaping the rewards. His new album, What Happened to the Beach? shows his maturity as a songwriter and his dedication to his craft as he dabbles in more experimental sounds and styles. Unfortunately, despite his ambition with this LP, it doesn’t pay off.
As soon as the opening track, ‘Wobble’, starts playing, you get a feel for the album. Sweet-sounding plucking guitar and lovely vocals dominate, and it feels like something you’ll be able to settle into easily. However, as the track progresses, the song develops, and the problems with that development are, unfortunately, a running theme throughout the entire album. What could be a pretty, sweet and honest sound gets layered with experimentation. It sounds like remixes of songs from someone just learning to use a computer instead of being anything cohesive and enjoyable.
There is nothing wrong with experimental music that sounds disjointed and chaotic; often, it can create an atmosphere and a unique sound. If you are going to do this, though, it’s not like the sea where you can just dip your toe in. McKenna seems willing to embrace the idea but hesitates to fully submerge himself in it, which makes being sure on this album difficult as it doesn’t seem sure of itself.
You can’t say this is a bad album; it’s good, McKenna’s voice is lovely, and the whole tone is too upbeat and light for it to be considered bad, but it does fall short of being great. It’s great to see a musician let go and dive into new territory, and there is certainly something here to be excited about, but on What Happened to the Beach? McKenna’s sandcastle is swept up by a tide of uncertainty.
For fans of: playing music in a car on a summer’s day, windows down, with good company, so good that you prioritise talking to them over listening to the music.
A concluding comment from Tom’s mother: “A record imbued with the feeling of someone trying a new haircut that they don’t suit, and know it deep down.”
What Happened to the Beach? Track by track:
Release date: 9th February | Producer: Gianluca | Label: Tomplicated
‘Wobble’: Aptly named, a song that starts this album that never finds form. Trickling guitar and mimicking vocal melody sound sweet, but undertones of light synth impose themselves too heavily on it. [2.5/5]
‘Elevator Hum’: There is too much going on in this disjointed song to make heads or tails with it. It sounds like a noise band and a folk band tuning instruments in rehearsal rooms next to each other. [1/5]
‘I Write The News’: Possibly the most disappointing song on the album. The honesty and stripped-back nature of the intro is reminiscent of days on the beach. Halfway through, when the electronic music kicks in, the song should be turned off immediately. [1/5]
‘Sympathy’: Beautiful. One of the best on the album. This track gives us a glimpse into what the record is trying to do, as styles are married together very well to create something beautiful. The vocal melody is also inspired. [4/5]
‘Mulhollands Dinner and Wine’: A song that is just begging to be on a Toyota advert. A bassy synth sound and up-tempo rhythm are fun to nod to, but the overall tone is dull. [3/5]
‘Breath of Light’: I was ready for Fergie to start singing at the beginning of this song with the ’00s like heavy panting over synth sounds. The song is an itch that you can’t quite scratch. No further questions. [1/5]
‘Nothing Works’: An upbeat number, very catchy and fun to listen to. Declan manages to hold a great vocal tone whilst singing a melody that doesn’t allow for excellent vocals to pierce through too much. Great song. [4/5]
‘The Phantom Buzz (Kick In)’: Great instrumentation throughout this song. Its place on the album seems odd as for an LP with various styles, two songs that are quite similar are put back-to-back, which takes away from it slightly. It’s a nice song, though. [3/5]
‘Honest Test’: The high vocals on this song are unsettling, and the instrumentation sounds like it belongs on the cutting room floor for one of Gorillaz’s lesser albums. [1.5/5]
‘Mezzanine’: The trumpet/synth sound used to capture the solos is a bizarre choice for what is otherwise a pretty acoustic-sounding sing-along. It’s a great example of this album asking if it could before asking if it should. [2.5/5]
‘It’s An Act’: Tranquil. Blissful. Melancholic. Criticisms about the album aside, this is gorgeous songwriting. [5/5]
‘4 More Years’: This is merely an outro, so it is hard to comment too much. A choir-like reverb drapes McKenna’s vocals as he says a quick goodbye. [3/5]
Never Miss A Beat
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