Bastille burst onto the music scene in 2013 with their hit “Pompeii,” well at least the American scene. According to the internet, these guys are quite popular in the UK. Their debut album Bad Blood sold well and Pompeii became one of those songs you don’t know you know until someone points it out. That’s a great achievement that’s unlikely to happen again. American Pop radio is fickle and for an indie/alternative band to have a top 5 hit that’s not out of one of the industries song factories, is a win that must be milked for all its worth.
Wild World is out and Bastille is back. Having been a huge fan of Bad Blood, I have some steep expectations for the follow up. Upon first listen it’s nice to hear their sound hasn’t fundamentally changed. Dan Smith’s accentuatedly British vocals are still at the center of a myriad of instruments grounded by traditional pop stylings. Strings, synthesizers, keyboards, drum machines, horns, Wild World has no limits in its production. Highlighted by “Good Grief”, “An Act of Kindness” “Send Them Off!”, “The Currents”, and the bonus track “Way Beyond” Wild World is a valiant effort at making a special follow up to a solid debut.
Unfortunately, Wild World falls flat pretty quickly. It carries the same tone as Bad Blood, but ultimately sounds like a really good collection of B-sides. I know its not necessarily fair to grade an artist by their past work, but a lot can be said about how engaging a collection of songs can be and Wild World just isn’t as engaging as Bad Blood. The hooks aren’t as catchy and the bright spots aren’t as bright, and while I don’t think this was ever a possibility, none of these songs will get American Pop Radio Play. Luckily their sound still feels fresh. They squarely fit the bill of bands like Two Door Cinema Club, Young the Giant, Bad Suns, and Grouplove, and I’m sure the album will be at least a modest success. Its got good tracks but the magic that was there on Bad Blood isn’t as potent.
On a side note, I don’t know if I like them sticking with the movie poster theme for the cover art. It was cute with Bad Blood and All This Bad Blood, and those two covers looked like they had a story to tell, but Wild World does not. The art is fine, but where the first two looked like David Lynch parodies, Wild World looks more like a traditional album cover. All hope isn’t lost, many bands have recovered from the Sophomore Slump and had wonderful and long careers, but for the moment Wild World isn’t groundbreaking in anyway.
Verdict – This one sits firmly in the “hmmm, why not?” column.