The Thousands

If you’ve come within sneezing distance of a blog in the last month you would have seen the Morning Benders video for their song ‘Excuses’ a live in-studio cut with the self-described Echo Chamber Orchestra. If you’re anything like me you’ve also watched that video about 100 times and favourited it on your YouTube AND your Vimeo.

So here’s the bad news – yes it’s that the waltzy wall-of-sound album opener ‘Excuses’ is the best song on the album. There is just no way it couldn’t be – hooky, hypnotic and huge, it ticks almost ever box. Sorry – I feel your pain too.

That’s not to say the rest of the album isn’t worth your time though, as it continues to mine a delightful mix of Beach Boys meets ’90s pop outlined in ‘Excuses’. Produced with appropriate sonic wonkery by Grizzly Bear’s Christopher Taylor, the songs on Big Echo sound just that – big – real big. Filling in all the gaps with majestic strings, tinkling piano, heartfelt vocals and oh so much lovely percussion the ‘Benders have made something that as a whole is highly enjoyable from one shimmering crescendo to the next.