The Wedding Present: Going, Going... (180g) on 2 LPs, 1 CD, 1 DVD and 1 Single 7"

Product Information

Ninth studio album from UK indie darlings tells the story of a road trip across the USA, revealed across a collection of twenty »Linked songs«, each with an accompanying short film. As Gedge points out, work began soon after the 2012 album »Valentina«. »I'd already decided by then that I didn't want to make the next release just another album and so I came up with the idea of twenty interconnected pieces of music. In the summer 2014 I travelled across the USA with photographer Jessica McMillan and we made some atmospheric short films to accompany the tracks. Since then it's been a case of progressing through the music, trying all sorts of ideas, seeing how they work set against the visuals.«

Uncharacteristically, the album opens with four hauntingly beautiful instrumental songs, including the cinematic »Sprague« and the captivating »Marblehead«. »Going, Going... « then takes a headlong dash through tracks such as »Two Bridges«, »Birdsnest«, »Kill Devil Hills« and »Broken Bow«... all perfectly executed in classic Wedding Present fashion; a jangle of clanging guitars, a squeal of feedback and a rush of adrenaline. With »Little Silver«, »Bear«, »Lead« and »Rachel« he proves yet again that he is a virtuoso when it comes to the bittersweet love song; his knack for a simple turn of phrase perfectly articulating the banalities and ecstasies of a relationship. Whilst they are the undoubted masters of frenetic indie-pop, The Wedding Present re-route momentarily on »Emporia« and »Wales« before ultimately immersing us in an epic album finale with »Santa Monica«.

Throughout this enchanting album ambient soundscapes and orchestral pop arrangements jostle for position with layers of feedback drenched guitars, pummelling drums and a truly massive bass sound as we hear some of the heaviest material that the band have ever recorded. The films that accompany each track are a mesmerizing collection of moving photographs. The rippling water in »Marblehead« delicately draws us into the melody while »Two Bridges« takes us onto a Manhattan street corner and exudes New York City in the summertime. The feeling of a road trip is present throughout as we see the rivers and lakes of the Mid-West and the deserts of the South-West before the album ends in a beautifully fitting way with the sun setting over the Santa Monica mountains.

Reviews

»Da sind sie wieder, die Dringlichkeit der Stimme, die Intensität der Gitarren, die Brachialromantik, die einem das Herz bricht.​ Viel besser kann 2016 kaum noch werden.​« (Rolling Stone 10/2016)

»The Wedding Present klingen so, wie man es kennt, mag und seit Ewigkeiten schätzt.​« (Eclat-Mag.​de)

»Die Indie-Ikonen Wedding Present fangen auf ihrem Roadtrip-Album »Going, Going.​.​.​« an zu kuscheln, bevor wie wieder in bewährt hochklassige Fahrwasser geraten.​« (INTRO 10/2016)

»Das Doppelalbum der britischen Indie-Veteranen bietet viel Gutes (.​.​.​) 20 Stücke sind einige zu viel, aber wenn The Wedding Present ins Herz treffen, dann springt es vor Glück.​« (VISIONS 10/2016)

»Allein vom Klang her spendiert das Doppelalbum seinem Inhalt mehr Luxus, als es die Indie-Mid-Fi Aufnahme eigentlich verlangt, und rein Ausstattungstechnisch ist die Platte ein Traum.​« (Mint 10/2016)