Badly Drawn Boy – Born In The UK
Born in the UK, a title no doubt inspired by Bruce Springstien’s album name, is the latest offering from UK indie favourite Badly Drawn Boy.
This album is a lot more moody and dark than previous offerings, sounding a bit like The Smiths or Embrace and is often found to be looking at all things British such as Maggie Thatcher, Sid Vicious and even hosepipe bans.
There are a number of catchy tunes which in typical BDB style will capture the imagination of the audience. In this instance they are Welcome to the Underground (a pop-like chanted song which feature BDB’s trademark catchy piano rhythm), Long Way Round (similar but with brass accompanying his softly sung vocals to make it sound even more pleasant) and title track Born in the UK (another fast tune which as the title implies is a look at Britain and it’s recent history) Other notable efforts include Nothing’s Gonna Change Your Mind, a simply composed stripped down contemplative piano song and Promises, a song in a similar vein which looks to the future.
Many are hailing this as Badly Drawn Boys best album since his debut. Thankfully for an artist whose career now spans 5 albums he has managed to still find subjects of passion to write about as opposed to churning out songs for the sake of it. As a result the listener is able to engage with the lyrics and the feelings behind them enhancing the music’s value.
By Craig Evans
