The Goalie's Anxiety at the Penalty Kick - 'Ways of Hearing'
Perhaps it’s teenage pretentions I’m unable to let go of, but there’s something about inordinately long band names or song titles that will always appeal to me, often irrespective of genre. Whether it’s tracks from the likes of Los Campesinos! or Mogwai, or entire catalogue of emo bands such as Empire! Empire! (I Was A Lonely Estate) or The World Is A Beautiful Place and I’m No Longer Afraid To Die, it’s something that has led to the discovery of plenty of bands that might otherwise have passed me by.
The Goalie's Anxiety at the Penalty Kick are one such band. Falling into the latter category, Ways of Hearing is the debut album from the six (sometimes seven) piece, and combines elements of introspective contemporary emo with a wistfully quiet brand of indie rock that’s as emotionally fraught as it is understated.
Harbouring a musical pallet as rich and diverse as one might expect from a six (sometimes seven) piece, strings, keys, guitars and drums all entwine to create a sonic tapestry that feels effortlessly intricate and staggeringly subtle in its delivery.
Of course, such subtlety and nuance mean that Ways of Hearing is an album that lacks a sense of immediacy with which to instantly grab its listeners. Instead, it relies on needing one’s whole attention, from the opening moments of picked guitar on ‘An Olive Coat’, to the bedroom pop of closer ‘Everyone Around Us’.
This is no bad thing. Ways of Hearing is a record that rewards those who go deeper than a cursory listen. ‘Jars Filled With Rain’ for instance, soars, albeit sombrely, while the interplaying vocals of Becky Hanno and Ben Curttright, though a highlight across the record as a whole, here feel perfectly understated.
Elsewhere, ‘God’s Country’ is fraught with a paranoid anxiety, the brooding guitars bolstered once again by the vocal duality of Curttright and Hanno, though this time their layered delivery serves to exacerbate the already almost disorientating nature of the track.
Arguably the record’s strongest moment comes in the form of its penultimate track. ‘Closer’ is three minutes of moody acoustic guitars and button bright keys, at least for its first half. From there it morphs into the record’s most encompassing and optimistic moment; the instrumentation merging to create a beautifully cacophonous conclusion to the track.
Though it goes without saying that Ways of Hearing won’t be for everyone, those who dig it will find a record that’s not only perfect for this time of year, but slowly reveals its nuances on each and every listen. A record well worth going back to time and time again.
Words of Dave Beech