‘A Slow Return To Normal' by Man Made Moon

Is the new Man Made Moon album ‘A Slow Return To Normal' which is out next week (on the 30^th) some form of concept album?

I don't know the answer to that & I suspect that the band would say that they crafted each track on its own merits. However there is a striking sense of unity to the whole.

These, for the record are three you'll know from prior release as singles ("McNulty's Bar", "The Boy Who Fell To Earth" and "I Am Ruben") plus "Daylight Ghosts", "A Beautiful Goodbye", "Trains Out of Town", "Left Behind", "Wildflowers", "The Great Survivor" and "A Better Day" (which comes out as a single on the same day as the album).

However regardless of an overt overarching concept, what struck me was the emotional consistency and complementary internal integrity between them. I suppose it may be down to a mindset or period of reflection during the creative process which creates a unity, but it certainly makes for an album with a strong sense of identity rather than just being a well sequenced collection of songs. Any concept may come from their collective subconscious.

The album is suffused with reflection, regularly to the point of introspection. I'd think that the peril here for writers would be getting too close to a mid-life crisis record. Though there is plenty of ruefulness, pockets of melancholia and fair helpings of looking back and trying to make sense, they don't fall into that particular trap.

Naturally the products of those musings are shared via the medium of metaphor throughout the album so we are not presented with a series of self-centred songs. Man Made Moon employ a light touch whenever it's right to do so and are adept at playing upbeat tunes against serious lyrics.

In fact it's easy often to delight in the instrumental passages by themselves almost independently of the words and throughout one is repeatedly reminded of how good they are playing: one of those bands whose technique is such that they make it sound so effortless: not least because the talent is put to use each time to support the song in question. You can (if you so want) play the whole album through & I defy you to spot any solo showboating. You will however clever little lines, riffs and touches of detail. Class stuff.

I'm trying to assess how I feel after playing it: they do take you on an emotional road trip (and again, returning to where we came in, I'm still not convinced that they have constructed it consciously in this way) and to their credit there is no filler: no song included because it feels nice but says little.

I'm aware that checking out the words is something reviewers do as do obsessives. Beyond these sad souls, the picture is mixed. Those who do are in for a valuable experience which has been lovingly curated for them: though it comes at a price as the ideas involved are true rather than platitudes and so processing them & relating them to your own experiences will prompt a range of responses.

For those who hear the vocals but don't heed the words, well you'll be tapping your toes along and dancing in places but you're missing levels worth dipping into.

Man Made Moon made their name with a series of songs which referenced in various direct or oblique ways things beyond the common experience: space, ghosts etc. This conjured up emotional pictures of the unworldly and in various forms, the magical.

Well any approach will succumb to the law of diminishing returns if pursued too long and with ‘A Slow Return To Normal', Man Made Moon are reacquainting themselves with more concrete and tangible matters: though as the title of the opening track shows as do many little moments of sublimity throughout, this is a process of evolution and not a repudiation of what has gone before.

It really is a fine album on several levels & if you like a little subtle in your music, this one's for you.