Relish's debut album Wildflowers (Wildflowers - Relish)

Member Name: shanecahill

Product:	Wildflowers - Relish
Date:	15/09/01 (160 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: See opinion

Disadvantages: See opinion

If you were one of the 79,999 people at Slane Castle on the 25th August 2001 (not including me!), and came early enough, you will have seen these guys give the performance of their life. After a stunning set, I'm sure I was not alone in picking up a copy of their debut album Wildflowers.

Relish are: Ken Papenfus : vocals, guitar.
Carl Papenfus : Drums, keyboards and vocals.
Darren Campbell : Bass and vocals.

The album kicks off with the lively Rainbow Zephyr amidst a flurry of hand clapping and keyboard and smooth vocals, which soon erupts into a chorus of the highest quality. A huge sing-along song which will have you dancing round the room until you realize there are a crowd of people looking in the window at you laughing, including the girl you've been moving in on for the last three months...(sob!). An excellent song none the less, most likely my favourite song on the album.

Heart-Shaped Box is not a Nirvana cover, but it still makes for excellent listening. After a quick guitar start, it bursts into massive vocals once more from Ken, which continue through the chorus of "You can give me what you can, from a woman to a man, put me in a heart-shaped box, put me in a heart-shaped box". Light drums are continuous throughout, and do I detect a hint of bongos? Marvellous.

Another stunner on this album is Let It Fly. Stronger guitar than any other track on this album, just backs up another tremendous chorus of "Let It fly, keep it low, find some love and let it flow, let it fly, let it fly". Not too deep, but if you're not singing along by the second listen...you should be (couldn't think of anything better). Amazing live, and every member of the band gives this track their all.

Their first really successful single from this album was You I'm Thinking Of, a laid-back track after a series of frenetic songs. Lazy guitar strumming lightly as the whole band (and me, of
course) sing along. The drums add a lot to the song aswell with quick bursts every now and then. A surprisingly mature track for a debut album, and one that shows the extent of the lad's talent.

This one has really grown on me over the few months I've had this album. All Is Forgiven starts with strong vocals over barely audible keyboard before bursting into a chorus of "All you've ever said and done is forgiven, all is forgiven". Probably the best line on the album appears on this track " What you've done, how do we ever forget you? You brought love, but we still tried to kill you." A beautiful track, which unlike a lot of the tracks on the album doen't need a huge chorus to make it a great song.


The first weak moment on the album appears as Natural High emerges. The most I can say for this track is at least its listenable. It starts promisingly with a blend of instruments playing a funky tune, but it then descends into mayhem and on top of it all, it has a flimsy chorus. You won't notice the track go by, which, all things considered, is probably a good thing.

A soft, slow song follows. Little Flame unfolds itself and reminds us why we bought the album. Slight picking guitar sounds are topped off with silky vocals. Short and sweet, it shows us once again that Relish are no run-of-the-mill indie band. They have a strong vocalist, a talented bass player and excellent drummer, all blending perfectly on this track. Sheer brilliance.

Everyday's Precious sadly, is not quite as good as its predecessor, with a thrown together verse backed by a decent chorus. The guitar in the background playing the constant riff is probably the best aspect of the song. Nothing special, yet it wouldn't be in my Top 10 Worst Tracks In The World (I feel a new opinion coming on!).

She Knows is magnificent a blend of harmonies, a premium verse and the icing on the cake is the spirited if s
lightly lyrically lacking chorus of "She knows, she knows". Simple yet effective, this is another stand out track. Not too shabby whatsoever!

The title track Wildflowers is no world-beater, yet it's perfect for background music. Effective guitar and the strong vocals of Ken blend to make a track that is just behind the top tracks on this album. Great stuff.

There is also a bonus track, which I personally would have put on the album instead of one of the weaker tracks. It's a cracker, with a guitar and drums intro and tremendous vocals once more. I have yet to find out the name of it, but when I do, I'll update the opinion. Maybe it has no name and I'll never update it. Who knows?!

Thus ends my review. To sum it up in a sentence or two, this album is an extremely promising debut album from an Irish band that along with JJ72 will fly the flag for Irish rock over the coming years. Some extremely accomplished tracks and some weaker tracks, but the latter are outnumbered by the first and in my humble opinion deserves a four star rating.

Remember people, nothing says I enjoyed your opinion more than a crown nomination. To dooyoo, I say nobody deserves a crown more than I do. So c'mon everybody, let's all pitch in and earn me a crown!

Summary: