Voices of Animals & Men (Bonus Dvd)

Young Knives | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (February 20, 2007)
• Original Release Date: 2007
• Number of Discs: 2
• Label: Rykodisc/Transgressive
• ASIN: B000MRA6YQ
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #292,746 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

Disc: 1

1. Part Timer

2. The Decision

3. Weekends and Bleak Days (Hot Summer)

4. In The Pink

5. Mystic Energy

6. Here Comes The Rumour Mill

7. Tailors

8. Half Timer

9. She's Attracted To

10. Dialing Darling

See all 14 tracks on this disc

Disc: 2

1. Kramer vs. Kramer (Live)

2. Kitchener (Live)

3. She's Attracted To (Live)

4. Another Hollow Line (Live)

5. Weekends and Bleak Days (Hot Summer) (Live)

6. The Decision (Live)

7. Here Comes The Rumour Mill (Video)

8. She's Attracted To (Video)

9. Weekends and Bleak Days (Hot Summer) (Live)

10. Weekends and Bleak Days (Hot Summer) (Video)

See all 14 tracks on this disc

Editorial Reviews

From Amazon.co.uk

Three young men who dress like old men who hail from the decidedly un-rock'n'roll environs of Ashby-de-la-Zouche, the Young Knives may not immediately resemble a band bound for the big time. Their Voices of Animals and Men, however--the follow-up to 2002 mini-album Young Knives Are Dead--demonstrates the sort of furious ambition and unfettered eccentricity that has catapulted bands like Queen, Sparks, and--oh yes--the Darkness into the British musical consciousness. Musically, we're talking lean, 70s-tinged art-rock a la Gang of Four or many of their myriad modern copyists. It's the vocal interplay of Henry Dartnall and his brother "The House of Lords" (so nicknamed because he vetoes the band's best ideas) that's truly their calling card, amusing narratives like "Weekends and Bleak Days (Hot Summer)," and the immortal meet-the-parents tale "She's Attracted To" delivered in shrill, priggish Middle English accents. Rollicking good fun, but a whole album of it could get obnoxious, so thank goodness for the likes of "Tailors", a mid-album interlude of chattering sewing machine and gentle, Syd Barrett-style vocal whimsy. --Louis Pattison

Product Description

Britain's The Young Knives have turned the nation on to the literate, disco-punk of their debut, Voices of Animals and Men . With its jerky, whip-cracking energy and eccentric vignettes of suburban desires, Voices of Animals and Men reveals The Young Knives as a band of diverse talents and an especially English version of wit, gloom and pure energy.

See all Editorial Reviews

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Young mens' voices, July 5, 2007

By 

E. A Solinas "ea_solinas" (MD USA) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Voices of Animals & Men (Bonus Dvd) (Audio CD)

Somehow it feels wrong to label the Young Knives "Britpop" -- they're so decidedly rock'n'roll that the last half of the word doesn't fit them.

In their full-length debut "Voices of Animals and Men," the British indie-rockers with the old-guy outfits blast out a series of explosive, high-energy rock songs, full of that old art-punk feeling. It's plenty of fun, though they sometimes have little but that blazing energy.

They open on repeating, screechy blasts of bass, with a bit of drum in between each blast. It's only the warmup for the frenetic, thumpy "Part Timer," apparently all about the woes of songwriting: "I'm not one to be at a loose end/But I found it hard to pick up the pen/Tomorrow I will try it again/With the sword..." Henry Dartnall howls.

It's a pretty weak song musically -- large spaces are filled with the blast-of-bass/drums combo -- but things soon pick up with the abstract, midtempo rocker "Decision." Most of the songs stick to the blazing, high-octane rock sound, whether it's muscular and grimy, or fast-paced and catchy.

But about halfway through the album, the Young Knives start experimenting with their style, such as the woobly abstract electrofolk of "Tailors," or the jazzy "Half Timer." And in this second lap, their rock tunes become smoother and more restrained -- they're still bursting with energy, but it's channeled into more confident tunes.

In fact, that second half is what makes me think that the Young Knives will go places -- the first half is fun, but there's not much unique stamp to it. It's just guitar rock. But it sounds like they got some maturity and polish while making the album, and learned a few things about making a lasting rock tune.

Most of the music is a jumble of the usual rock instruments -- blasts of muscular bass, driving guitar melodies that can sway or rocket away, and drums to set a solid beat. Later on, they tie the instrumentation together into a tight melodic rope, and experiment with darker, more dramatic melodies. And one song is basically a loose bind of airy synth, odd noises, and a meandering acoustic guitar.

As if the album wasn't already suffused with love o' rock, Dartnall has a pretty good voice -- strong, raw, and on key. In fact, sometimes he sounds like Art Brut's Eddie Argos. Not just because of the spoken vocals, but the clever songs: being a rocker, girls ("You were screaming at your mom and I was punching your dad!"), and general problems with being a young British guy ("And I think I'm going to die in here/Considering Loughborough suicide/Which I'm definitely going to do this year...").

The Young Knives are pretty mediocre for the first half of "Voices of Animals and Men," but this fledgling band starts to really soar halfway through. Definitely keep an eye on these lads.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Deserves to win the Mercury, August 25, 2007

By 

Clara Suess - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Voices of Animals & Men (Bonus Dvd) (Audio CD)

One of the best UK debuts in many years. Excellent live and with influence from XTC, as shown by Andy Partridge's production. Along with Maps, the only album whicj deserves to with the Mercury Music Award in September.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Hey, I'm an Englishman and I'm in your face..., April 17, 2007

By 

D. Davidson "Music Lover" (Portland, OR) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Voices of Animals & Men (Bonus Dvd) (Audio CD)

Voices of Animals and Men is high-energy, and it doesn't take itself too seriously. It's basically one giant scoop of butt-kicking rock and roll with dancepunk sprinkles. If you like the sound of LCD Soundsystem, The Rakes or We Are Scientists, I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that you might like The Young Knives.

However, I can only give this cd 4 stars. It definitely has the "shrill, Englishman in your face rock" vibe going on, and some of the songs are great, but there's not a whole lot of substance or originality here. I don't think they were really going for originality (or even care about it), so I'm not going to fault them too much for that.