Paddy and The Rats "Lonely Heart's Boulevard" Nordic Records NR 05
Release date: September 7th, 2015
Running time: 49:51, 14 tracks
Release date: September 7th, 2015
Running time: 49:51, 14 tracks
Paddy and The Rats “Lonely Hearts’ Boulevard” has had mixed reviews so far. Most of the critics are happy with the band’s new direction. However, a Russian colleague wrote on his site that this album was the disappointment of the year and several negative comments were made there and on other places. “Paddy and the Rats are a bunch of poseurs”, “Paddy has just got married and then he is writing softer material now”, “Paddy and the Rats are sell-outs” …
If one listens carefully to Paddy and The Rats previous albums, one will understand that “Lonely Hearts’ Boulevard” is a logical step on the band’s evolution. Echoes from the likes of The Beatles, The Corrs and Queen could be noticed on some old songs. So, a passage to the Celtic pop territory is not a big surprise. Mainly if we take into account Paddy and The Rats skills to write infectious and catchy songs. And the singles “That’s My Mature”, with its keyboards, guitars and backing vocals, and “Without You”, with mandolin and accordion, are brilliant pop-rock gems.
“Lonely Hearts’ Boulevard” is maybe poppier than the songs from their previous albums, but the Paddy and The Rats pedigree is stuck to its core. “My Sharona”, which is not a The Knack cover, showcases an amazing fiddle and accordion part. “Sleeping with the Winter” features a The Corrs sounding fiddle again. “Captain of My Souls” is an epic track that is inspired by the “Invictus” poem. And “Junkyard Girl” shows a different side of the band and has a beginning that reminds me of the Velvet Underground / Lou Reed “Sweet Jane”.
On the other hand, there are several numbers faithful to Paddy and The Rats previous albums: the fast-paced anthems “Keep the Devil Down in The Hole” and “Drunker than You”, the fantastic bagpipes punk-rock number “Rock This City” and “Time in my Hands”, mainly on their second half.
"Lonely Hearts’ Boulevard” packaging is a 4 panel digipack. An 8 page booklet is included giving all the information about songs credits, studio credits and line-up, together with the lyrics to all of the songs. The album was basically recorded at Nordic studios by Zoli Baker, who also mixed and mastered the tracks. Paddy and Zoli produced the album.
The eternal question: should a band give the fans what they are expecting from them or should they follow their own creativity? Perhaps there is no a general answer that can be applied to every single band. Anyway, Paddy and The Rats are evolving, you like it or not, and they are being coherent on that evolution. No, “Lonely Hearts’ Boulevard” is not a "faux pas" on their career, definitely. Probably they’ll lose some diehard Celtic punk fans, but stretching the boundaries of the genre will bring new fans to them. Ands that's good for both the scene and Paddy and the Rats.
01 - Keep the Devil Down in the Hole 3:41
02 - Lonely Hearts' Boulevard 3:34
03 - My Sharona 3:24
04 - Rogue 2:26
05 - That's My Nature 3:45
06 - Sleeping with the Winter 3:25
07 - Drunker Than You 3:02
08 - Captain of My Soul 4:10
09 - Blue Eyes 3:52
10 - Rock This City 3:33
11 - Time Is in My Hands 3:55
12 - Without You (I Don't Wanna Dance) 4:06
13 - Junkyard Girl 2:51
14 - What We Are 4:02
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Review by Kinksmarkham
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