Life in a Stereo World (Swim: Re-surfaced - Feeder)

Member Name: Andy.mack

Product:	Swim: Re-surfaced - Feeder
Date:	22/12/04 (110 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: A good album, certainly worth the re release and owning

Disadvantages: It never seems to have gotten the amount of coverage it deserves

It doesn’t seem like almost 9 years since Feeder released their debut mini album Swim. The album was re-released in 2001 with a number of additional tracks recorded around the same time. The original release only contained 6 tracks but as the bands confidence in themselves and their music continued to grow, they decided to add an additional 5. The resulting album provides an excellent insight into Feeder’s musical origins and the rock roots they sprung from.

As a debut album it seemed to slip by almost unnoticed but with the re-release coinciding with the bands most successful album to date it was the ideal opportunity. They also had an added bonus with a couple of the tracks featuring on the soundtrack to Gran Turismo. The chance for Feeder fans to pick up the bands first album with an additional 5 tracks proved to be a spot of marketing genius by the band. I for one have been a huge fan of Feeder since the late 90’s and the release of “Yesterday Went Too Soon” so picked up the new release of the album.

During the 90’s a number of bands emerged from the Welsh music scene and most seem to have made a bigger impression than Feeder. The one advantage Feeder have over all the other Welsh bands though is that everyone seems to love a Feeder track. I seem to be finding as well that most people love different tracks or like the band without even realising it. The main reason I think feeder succeed with this, where other bands fail is the mixture of nice mellow Indie tracks and heavy rock tracks.

This has to be the example of Feeder’s varying styles. It combines both ends of the scales and covers a large amount of ground in between. There are parts of this album such as title track “Swim” that really show Nicholas at his best. The song sounds quite slow and meandering but sounds totally amazing. The slow guitar segments of the song are quite often found in Feeder tracks both on this album and on others. He also seems to have succeeded in making the whole album lyrically sublime. Again I feel that “swim” is probably the best example with a real sense of depth and meaning in the lyrics.

The whole album is musically superb. There is no over the top production and the overall sound of the album is purely as it was intended. The guitars play a huge part in the overall scheme of the album. They set the tone for each track with either the more upbeat sound of “Sweet 16” to the slower more mellow sounding “Elegy”. Each track is given a solid backing by the drums, which never really stand out but give each song a decent structure. The guitars and drums compliment each other superbly and this gives the album a nice edge.

I’ve always found Grants lyrics to be truly sublime. There always seems to be incredible depth and meaning to his lyrics as he draws a lot on personal experience and feeling. This has been clear from the early days of the band and a lot of these tracks highlight that fact. It’s also a plus that Nicholas seems to really let that emotion flow through his lyrics. This really helps the album a lot as Nicholas seems to display a lot of passion with each track, which benefit’s the overall sound of the album.

It’s hard to pick a favourite track from the album as they are all pretty even keeled. It really depends what you are looking for. I love “Sweet 16” for it’s upbeat, fast paced sound that really makes you feel quite good. On the other hand there are tracks like “Descend”, which although a lot darker sound equally as fantastic. Its one thing about Feeder that really works well in that they really do appeal to everyone through there varying styles.

This is one of the best examples of Feeder’s work. Even though it was intended to be a mini album to get them a foot in the door it proves to be a basis for everything they have done since. If you are a fan of the band then I certainly recommend this album as a must have. With the new album due out next month I’m sure it’ll be just as good as all the previous efforts and especially this first one. An excellent addition to anyone’s collection.

Amazon.co.uk: £7.99

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