And Punk Rock Saved My Life. (Sleep Is For The Week - Frank Turner)

Member Name: Andy.mack

Product:	Sleep Is For The Week - Frank Turner
Date:	21/10/09 (40 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: An album with excellent lyrical and musical content

Disadvantages: -

There seems to be a rare new breed of musicians appearing on the World music scene mixing the gentle world of folk with the much faster punk genre. Originally these bands were by and large coming out of America with Dropkick Murphy's and Flogging Molly but in 2007 the first British punk/folk acted released his debut album. I am of course talking about former Million Dead singer Frank Turner and his transition into a solo artist. Following the breakup of the band Turner decided his own musical career would continue as a solo artist and in 2007 he released this album, Sleep Is for the Weak.

I'd been aware of turner under his previous guise of the Million Dead however the release of solo material took me a little bit by surprise. It was a real change of direction from the hardcore punk approach from Million Dead to the far more relaxed and chilled out folk punk of Turner's solo material. The album itself was recorded in a studio in Oxford over a period of 2 months during 2006 and was finally released in January 2007 Xtra Mile recordings an independent record label based in London.

While the album itself wasn't released to a massive fan fair it was fair to say that the album was on the whole well received. The musical press in particular had a lot of good things to say about Turner's solo material. While the albums sound was a massive departure from the music Turner had become known for it works particularly well. His vocals really suit the slower melody and pace of the tracks on this album and like the American bands previously mentioned he really makes a genre that perhaps shouldn't work come alive.

A large amount of the album features Turner on an acoustic guitar and occasionally there is an extra beat of musical accompaniment from the drums or a piano. The combination of sounds creates a very relaxed tone to the album and really gives him an opportunity to create the sort of music he really wants to. This was never an album that would be an instant hit and I think he really appreciates that and it comes across in the music. If you take the time to listen to the album it will grow on you but apart from a couple of tracks don't expect it to be an instant love affair from the opening notes.

There is a very mature sound to Turner's vocals and the lyrical content of the tracks really plays a big part in that. In an interview he is quoted as saying the tracks reflect a year in his life. With a good personal involvement in his lyrics it puts some real feeling into his vocals and the combination of his voice with the acoustic guitar works very well. They really complement each other very well and give him a sound that is quite unique on the British scene at the moment.

This is a very solid album with a couple of real stand out tracks in "The Real Damage" and "Vital Signs". The only down side I would say would be the fact that there aren't really that many singles on this album and that is the reason it has taken Turner a little longer to get the radio play his music deserves. Of course that really isn't a bad thing and his unique combination of folk and punk works very well producing an excellent album. He manages to blend the slower melody of the folk genre and combine them particularly well where needed with the faster sound of the punk genre.

While I think it's fair to say that the genre doesn't sound like it should work, there is something about Turner's strong vocals that you can't help but like. He manages to blend two genres very well and the result is a debut album full of very good tracks. It isn't an album you'll love the minute you listen to it, but there is a nice blend of tracks that will keep you hooked on the album and keep you listening to the point where you love this album as much as I do now. What the future will hold for Frank Turner is still to be seen but with increasing airplay for his more recent material the signs are very good that this debut album has launched him on the way to being a huge success.

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Summary: Debut album from former Million Dead singer Frank Turner