Imperial Leisure - Death To The One Trick Pony (Album Review)
Friday, 23 March 2012
Written by Ben Bland
Sometimes it’s hard to know whether to take Imperial Leisure seriously. Sure, this is a band that makes music for fun and to be fun but the frustrating hints of genuine substance in their work have sometimes made their more light hearted output a little more disappointing. 'Death to the One Trick Pony' spends some time trying to prove itself as a mature, self-conscious record but never genuinely convinces.
The biggest issues revolve around the fact that when they try to be genuinely affecting, Imperial Leisure come across more as pastiche. 'I Thought They’d Love You' sprawls across four and a half minutes without prompting any real reaction and the sentiment of 'All in Good Time' is sadly rendered so wet that you can almost feel it dripping on you through your headphones. There are no bad songs per se on this album, but so much of it is depressingly average and lacks the kind of punch to make a real impact upon the listener.
Imperial Leisure are still at their best when they act like an old school ska punk band and thankfully they do remember that at times. The opening salvo of 'Clown at the Funeral' and 'Number One' gets things off to a Specials-tastic start but then it is not until the end of the record that the band nail out another good run of decent tracks.
It has to be said though that even when this band ska things up there is little that can really be said in their praise. They are good at what they do, although their increasingly frequent attempts to craft emotional balladry suggest that they too realise that they are, in many ways, the one trick pony that this album title suggests they despise.
Ska is a genre for its fans and it takes exceptional ska bands to really attract anyone else. Imperial Leisure may be good fun at times but at others they are unfortunately limp and lack anything to mark them out as a unique band. This one is for fans only I suspect.
'Death to the One Trick Pony' is out on Monday via Steam Roller Music.
Imperial Leisure are on tour across the UK in April.
NOTE FROM THE EDITOR
We don't run any advertising! Our editorial content is solely funded by lovely people like yourself using Stereoboard's listings when buying tickets for live events. To keep supporting us, next time you're looking for concert, festival, sport or theatre tickets, please search for "Stereoboard". It costs you nothing, you may find a better price than the usual outlets, and save yourself from waiting in an endless queue on Friday mornings as we list ALL available sellers!
The biggest issues revolve around the fact that when they try to be genuinely affecting, Imperial Leisure come across more as pastiche. 'I Thought They’d Love You' sprawls across four and a half minutes without prompting any real reaction and the sentiment of 'All in Good Time' is sadly rendered so wet that you can almost feel it dripping on you through your headphones. There are no bad songs per se on this album, but so much of it is depressingly average and lacks the kind of punch to make a real impact upon the listener. 
.jpg)
.jpg)
