As the new Courteeners album, Pink Cactus Cafe, is released this week, I think it’s clear Liam Fray has come a long way from front crawling the crowd at 42’s, but then haven’t we all?
Pink Cactus Cafe
This new release is a leap away from St. Jude which is interesting given the band spent a good while recently (rightfully) dining out on its re-released success. But there’s not even a hint of the “can you play guitar my boy?” Fray in Pink Cactus Cafe.
The addition of Elina Lin to the band on keys has had a clear impact on their sound, but Fray has also become noticeably more humble and reflective in recent years which has also greatly influenced the band’s musical trajectory. Opening up the album to collaborations with acts such as DMAs and Brooke Combs has also distinctly affected its direction.
A progression towards pop
There’s definitely a swing towards a more pop sound on this record. Personally, I think title track Pink Cactus Cafe might be the greatest song Liam Fray has ever written. I love its stripped back catchiness and the little whistle motif that recurs throughout. It’s fun but still communicates a story, of finding that person, that place that just makes you feel safe.
On the subject of story telling, the final song on the album, Bitten By Unseen Teeth, is lyrically beautiful. While melodically it’s fairly understated compared to most tracks on the album, it’s definitely a song that begins to really stick with you after the second or third listen.
Beginning Of The End (with DMAs) is probably the most typical ‘Courteeners’ song of the album. It’s more heavily guitar driven at points but you can certainly hear DMAs influence in there and it wouldn’t be out of place on one of their own albums.
The story of getting older
As for the album as a whole, thematically it deals with stories of regret, consequences and, at times, loneliness. That notion that we consider everything a little more deeply as we get older and those demons that lurked around corners of our youth are a little harder to avoid. In ways it’s confronting that the cocky frontman everyone’s got a ‘drunk on Oxford Road’ story about carries around such insecurities, but honestly I like this version of Liam a lot more. Perhaps it’s being from the same place and roughly the same age but it’s a very relatable album. Stylistically the songs dance around a little and it feels a tad disjointed at times but it’s fresh, it’s authentic and I’d rather have the bands I love making the music they want to, imperfections and all, than making the same old tracks year on year.