This latest and fairly long awaited release from the superb Magazine Gap has one of their strongest melody lines yet, not to mention the deeply human connotations that come through in the lyrics. James Keen’s vocals are always up there as one of my personal favourites to listen to, and Ran For Cover showcases those unique and hypnotic characteristics in a pretty almighty manner.
The way in which the chorus in particular is delivered is stunning, James’ voice takes on the beautiful intricacies of its personal style, as well as coming through with absolute depth due to the relentlessly honest and revealing nature of the lyrics. This particular display of openness, this concept of running for cover when we perhaps should have stood our ground, is something a fair few of us can probably relate to.
Ran For Cover has all of the beauty of the Magazine Gap sound – this skillful, ever professional set up; instrumentation, structure, only the very best lyrics (no filler). But it also comes with a certain depth and emotional presence that is likely to be really well received, particularly by long standing fans of the band. There are also some simple additional touches to the music that really help raise the energy of the whole piece – Binker Golding & Jeffrey Brown provide a stylish set of riffs on saxophone and trumpet and the overall effect is distinctly notable.
The Magazine Gap sound is never overwhelmed with instrumentation, there’s always plenty of space among the music to let the songs really speak – the rising intensity is built upon the strength of the songwriting – but wherever the music appears it does so in a thoughtful and precise sort of way. Alex Ho adds the softness of the piano part with modest and unwavering skill, and Brian McCook brings the raw and rhythmic passion of percussion with perfectly relevant execution. As has always been said, they’re a tight band – the songs work so well because everything is so perfectly included. Ran For Cover is not exception. A gorgeous new release.
Listen to the song on Soundcloud. Find and follow Magazine Gap on Facebook, Twitter & Instagram. Visit their Website for more information.
