Originally, I thought Tom Williams and the Boat were a folk band, but when I finally got round to listening to their debut album ‘Too Slow’, I realized the band takes its unique sound from many influences; from Radiohead to the Pixies and Bob Dylan. The band have gained praise from many in the industry and have gained a solid base of fans, notably Steve Lamacq and Zane Lowe.
The next track to be released by the band off their debut album is the wonderfully intricate and complicated ‘Concentrate’, to my surprise a song based on the inner thoughts and motivations of a suicide bomber. Leaving all preconception about the concept of the track behind, lead singer Tom Williams has created something rather remarkable with this track’s lyrically twist.
Musically, the single continues the great range of influences and genres employed by the band throughout the album, subtle yet powerful riffs, with intricate guitar and piano parts. The violin changes the tone and pace of the single, a more melancholic and thoughtful feel is created, and then this is immediately changed by the almost Frank Turner like shout of the tracks chorus, “I’m a modern Man”. It’s almost anthemic.
The true brilliance of the tracks lies in its lyrics. Clever and highly developed, Tom Williams manages to take some of the trivial ideas of modern everyday life, demonstrated in the lyrics “I meet friends on MSN, friends is friends” to discuss the track’s topic, as if the protagonist of the track is attempting to assure himself of his loneliness. The single deals with the self obsessed nature of its character “I think I’m intelligent, I think I’m open minded, I think I’ve got a world view and there’s not many people around here like me I can tell you”.
Lyrically Tom Williams has be compared to Regina Spektor and Arcade Fire’s Win Butler; he is a truly remarkable wordsmith. With many artists and bands we would describe as alt rock or indie falling into the trap of over simplified or nonsense lyrics, the intricate nature of Concentrate is incredibly refreshing.
Generally originally and reassuringly engaging, if you haven’t listened to the band before, this is a reason to start. The track is officially out on May 9th 2011.
Preorder here:
The band is currently on a UK headline tour and has these dates left:
Friday 15th Northampton, Roadmenders
Saturday 16th London, The Borderline
Monday 18th Eastney, The Cellars
Tuesday 19th Manchester, Night & Day
Thursday 21st Aldershot, West End Centre
Friday 29th Reading, Rising Sun
May
Sunday 1st London, The Camden Crawl
Friday 6th Tunbridge Wells, High Rocks (Hometown)
Saturday 7th London, Shepherds Bush Empire, Bushstock
Friday 13th Brighton, Latest Music Bar, The Great Escape
Saturday 14th Derbyshire, Bearded Theory Festival