Elbow – Audio Vertigo Review

An album with as stunning a cover as this has every right to be good. It all comes together. Judge an album by its artwork, as they say. Audio Vertigo, the latest release from consistent British group Elbow, has all the oozing cool coming from its title and record sleeve. Pray for quality. It is the difference between filling a hole on the print wall and not. They already teased the storm of good faith on Lover’s Leap, and so now listeners must leap too, into the fires of a band that has proven themselves of a consistent and capable unit. Has Elbow captured the static panic of sticking by your decision? Somewhat. Their focus is percussion-heavy, confident in their new strokes and intermittent guitar presses, and rightly so.  

Fix yourself and make the changes you always told yourself you would. Opener Things I’ve Been Telling Myself for Years lingers on a slick guitar blend and vocal performance elevated above it, out of step with the instrumentals but wrapped warmly in its embrace. Should any less be expected of Guy Garvey? He sounds mellowed by family life but does not lose his biting endurance, those flickers of commentary surrounding what is most important in the world. What we tell ourselves and what matters most are separate columns and figuring this out is a wonderful experience when guided by these Elbow tracks. It is the band at their creative best. Shake through their art rock. No wonder Elbow enlisted The Waeve for this recent tour. Balu and Very Heaven are the lower ebbs of this style, not quite as tightly wound as the preceding tracks but still faithful to their vision of a brighter future if you give yourself time for an earnest direction. 

Lower octaves of piano work on Her to the Earth take Elbow to their desired, art rock destination. Lounge-like relaxation with this need to reconnect with the world. Tech flourishes on The Picture feel sadly neutered of its fizzing ability, the instrumental abilities bubbling away underneath this cry into the ether, hoping to fish Garvey and his writing out of a muddled core. Flickers of brass and some soft tambourine on Poker Face shoo away implications of Lady Gaga covers and instead reflect on the echo chamber of your mind, how difficult it is to pull away from feeling horrid if that is all you experience. Audio Vertigo spells out plain problems and articulates how even the simplest of troubles can mark a massive struggle.  

Make a change or the embers of the day lay in your hands without any effect to them. Or at least, the brief spot on Embers of the Day tries to muster before drifting off into Good Blood Mexico City. There is some hope from Garvey of his words affecting those who need it most. Lay down the torment and persuade yourself to feel hopeful. Abandon the hopelessness. Audio Vertigo hopes for change though affects little in its lacklustre latter half. Closer From the River is a note of forgiveness. Who else is going to remove the burden of the self, other than the person with the power to do so? Audio Vertigo, like many of the Elbow records before it, has its heart in the right place.