My Maudlin Career

Camera Obscura | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (April 21, 2009)
• Original Release Date: 2009
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: 4AD
• ASIN: B001T46U32
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Music
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (42 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,561 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #35 in Music > Alternative Rock > Indie & Lo-Fi > General

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Pure and unabashed pop bliss" --Filter

"A gorgeous pop album, to say the least." --Under the Radar

"The band's finest year, with 10 succinct tunes that artfully blend the musical signifiers of the 60's with clever songwriting." --Paste

Product Description

As the title suggests, their new album shares with the listener an affectionate wit and a melancholy tendency towards life's daily routines and relationships. Yet it also boasts and expands on the affected pop elements explored on their breakout album, "Let's Get Out Of This Country". It's no wonder Camera Obscura are often mentioned in the same sentences as fellow Scots Belle & Sebastian, indie rock faves The Lucksmiths, and music legends The Smiths

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 15 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Exquisite,captivating, brilliant country/rock melodies. April 30, 2009

By monte

Format:Audio CD

After their last album "Let's Get Out Of The Country" achieved breakthrough-of-sorts status thanks to an exceptional lead single, "Lloyd, I'm Ready To Be Heartbroken", the Glasgow indie band now finds itself on the legendary, seminal 4AD label.
The renowned Swedish producer Jari Haapalainen - whose past credits - Peter Bjorn And John, The Concretes, Ed Harcourt - give one an idea of the richly textured soundscapes he can co-create - is back for his second outing with the band, building on the dense production introduced on their third album, which is purely and simply about love.
It starts in a resolutely non-maudlin mode. The upbeat Phil Spector-esque "French Navy", the opening track, is 60s pop with strings, and a vocal echo that lends itself so well to Tracyanne Campbell's voice, sending it ethereal. At times it reminds me of Canadian Jann Arden and American Natalie Merchant of 10,00 Maniacs. The bittersweet song is typical of Campbell's oeuvre in that it's unspeakably lovely, but so delicate it doesn't live long in the memory. Her soft Glaswegian accent and soft, nasal tones suit the fragility and juvenility of a 'he-loves-me-he-loves-me-not' sentimentality.
Elsewhere, there's a blissful summery quality to "The Sweetest Thing", while the country-ish "Away With Murder" showcases the singer's fondness for kitchen-sink realism.
"How many times have you told me you want to die?" she sings. "How many times have you told me that you've tried?". Rarely have lines as sombre been wrapped in a package as pretty.
The Glaswegian outfit deliver their finest outing, with seductive songs such as "Careless Love", sweeping strings and Tracyanne Campbell evoking the spirit of The Shangri-Las over thumping drums on the title track.
"Other Towns And Cities" sounds so authentically vintage it is tempting to blow the dust off to savour the ethereal guitar. The overall feeling of "My Maudlin Career" is one far sunnier that its title may imply. With a collection of eleven heartbreak symphonies and affectingly lilting arrangements, the album offers a nice surprising departure, moving further away from jaunty folk pop and embracing lush balladry.
It feels like a breakthrough, more polished and poised: the result of continuous artistic evolution, without compromising their cuteness or charm.
The album will please the existing fans, but those coming to the band for the first time will find plenty to enjoy.
My favourite tracks: "French Navy", "My Maudlin Career", "The Sweetest Thing", "Other Towns And Cities" and "Honey In The Sun".
Living Thing
Until Tomorrow Then- The Best of Ed Harcourt (2 CDs)
The Concretes
Uncover Me
MTV Unplugged
Let's Get Out of This Country

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Maudlin Eloquence April 21, 2009

By tmonnn

Format:Audio CD

An eagerly anticipated album for those of us who have overdone it listening to Let's Get out of This Country. More uptempo than its predecessor, maybe a bit more of a Country flavor here and there. Eloquent, sometimes playful songs of heartache, loss and lonliness. A nostalgic and dreamlike musical atmosphere brought about in part by classic use of reverb and a warm, retro organ sound. Wonderful.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars My Tearfully Sentimental Career April 21, 2009

By Flap Jackson VINE™ VOICE

Format:MP3 Music

When I first discovered with Camera Obscura with "If Looks Could Kill," I was like most that had heard the album; enchanted. Enter "My Maudlin Career" a strangely titled album that is as enchanting and lite as its predecessors are. The album starts with the sound that I've come to love from the band in "French Navy," which coincidentally is the highlight and first single of the album. It's a lovely and enchanting piece of bliss that even comes out catchy in the end. The same goes for "The Sweetest Thing," which transitions nicely from `Navy.'

From track 3 on, the album starts drifting into a melodic glaze of emotions and sentimentality, floating on mid-tempo, unmemorable, but still good, lite pop tracks. It's not that they're bad; it's just that by themselves, the songs don't hold up, but they sound great while going through the album. Either this will win admiration, or the skip button, depending on your tastes as it makes up the vast majority of the album. In fact, it could be said that the first two tracks were a bone thrown to fans of their earlier work.

Highlights Include:
French Navy
The Sweetest Thing
Honey in the Sun

Overall, one of the finer indie releases of the year, but the turn that the album takes for most of its journey will throw off most. Call it melodic, call it enchanting, engaging, poppy, or call it bliss, just call it Camera Obscura and call it good.