Author: Aleš Podbrežnik
Artist: Simple Minds
Label: Caroline International S&D
Release: 2016
Length: 58:15
Rating: 4/5
Scottish new wave and art rock legends Simple Minds, armed to the teeth with eighties hits, are considered one of the most successful musical exports the north of the British Isles has ever produced.
So what we have here is the album »Acoustic«, on which Simple Minds serve up a string of their beloved radio hits and the most recognizable songs of their career in acoustic dress. The band got the idea at one of their rare acoustic gigs, which Simple Minds recorded in September 2014 for the Chris Evans Breakfast Show. The point was simply to promote their freshly released and still current studio album »Big Music«. Nothing more. But against all expectations, fans greeted it with a flood of approval and excitement. So the band decided to test how other songs from their rich back catalog would hold up too, and that catalog now stretches to a whopping sixteen studio albums.
So what happened to the classics, mostly hits, once Simple Minds slipped them into an acoustic coat? A musical revolution it certainly isn’t. The synths are no longer noticeable, even though the background is propped up with a backdrop of warped guitar sounds run through effects (sustain, reverb), but this time the acoustic guitars of the band’s iconic guitarist Charlie Burchill are of course front and center, wrapping around Jim Kerr’s eternally charming vocals. The rhythms are mostly handled in a »percussive« way this time, yet they keep that absolutely primal (dance-floor-ready) simplicity. Kerr’s vocals are often tinted with a female voice. On the duets he’s joined by Sarah Brown, a longtime Simple Minds collaborator, while the special guest on this album, on Promised You A Miracle, is the renowned British singer-songwriter KT Tunstall. So, an organic makeover, steered by crystal-clear sound production and sharply accented shifts in the contrasts between the building blocks of the sonic picture, led by the central figure of Kerr’s always intuitive, deeply felt vocal delivery. The guitars have of course also taken over most of the action in the »mid-eight« passages, and by reworking the melodies in these instrumental stretches, where a dash of improvisation is welcome too, they bring an extra departure from the originals. With the acoustic sound front and center this time, the band tailored the arrangements so that the backdrop behind the vocals is tinted with additional harmonic ornaments that deepen the Celtic melos itself and, with added delicate veils of guitar (run through extra effects), keep a distinct touch of mystique and melancholic longing alive.
Judging by the band’s very name, and by the format of the songs too, Simple Minds never overcomplicated things. Their artistic strength was always built on combining short, punchy arrangement strokes with the construction of a rich soundscape that calls up mystique. This time, with the backdrop organic and »naked«, the repeated chorus melodies poke out a bit more, something the band could have time-limited and trimmed down.
Interestingly, this time the band chose to put percussionist and drummer Cherisse Osei (Mika, Bryan Ferry) in the »master of time« seat instead of regular member Mel Gaynor, who would have handled such challenges without the slightest trouble, with feather-light ease. At the same time, Charile Burchill wanted to tighten the acoustic »vise« of guitars, so he invited yet another guitarist, Gordy Goudie, to join in.
The last track, Long Black Train, deserves a mention too: it’s not a band original but a cover of a song by English singer-songwriter Richard Hawley.
»Acoustic« reflects and reveals a new musical face of the band. A substantially different one, a little shy and timid, which goes hand in hand with acoustic »maidenhood«, but one you unmask in a heartbeat, and which instantly rings powerfully homey and familiar. It offers inventive, filigree-fine arrangements from seasoned masters of their trade, along with all the essential traits of the band’s artistic uniqueness. Every devoted Simple Minds fan has definitely snapped it up already, and the band has announced its first gigs for next May (around Great Britain), where they’ll of course play in strictly acoustic mode. Mission thoroughly accomplished.
One more thing. Besides the CD with twelve tracks and the digital format, “Acoustic” has also been available since November 25, 2016 on 180-gram vinyl. Its special feature is three extra songs you won’t find on the CD, namely: Stand By Love, Speed Your Love To Me and Light Travels.
Simple Minds – Don’t You (Forget About Me), acoustic version:
Lineup
Jim Kerr – vocals
Sarah Brown – vocals
Charlie Burchill – guitar
Gordy Goudie – guitar
Ged Grimes – bass guitar
Cherisse Osei – percussion, drums
Production
Charlie Burchill
Track list
1. The American
2. Promised You A Miracle (featuring KT Tunstall)
3. Glittering Prize
4. See The Lights
5. New Gold Dream (81-82-83-84)
6. Someone Somewhere In Summertime
7. Waterfront
8. Sanctify Yourself
9. Chelsea Girl
10. Alive And Kicking
11. Don’t You (Forget About Me)
12. Long Black Train
