Since 2017 breakout album Brutalism, IDLES have been impossible to avoid in the UK rock scene, and for good reason.
The bands first 3 albums: 2017's “Brutalism”, 2018's “Joy as an Act of Resistance” and 2020's “Ultra Mono” combined charged up political anger with intense, often fast paced guitar-based instrumentation. In February 2019 however, something changed. In that crucial month for the band, Sleaford Mods and other bands accused IDLES of engaging in “class appropriation”, something that’s clearly had a monumental impact on the band- especially in singer Joe Talbot's writing topics.
In November 2021 the band released 4th album “Crawler”, which was a major departure from the band's previous works. With “Crawler”, Talbot chose to sing about his personal troubles with issues such as addiction instead of politics, with an unexpected range of crushing instrumentation replacing the band's former expected trajectory. If Crawler was a departure for the band, then TANGK (pronounced Tank with a tinge of G) feels like a completely different band entirely.
Assembling producers Nigel Godrich (Radiohead, The Smile) and Kenny Beats (Rico Nasty, Denzel Curry, Vince Staples, JPEGMAFIA) is an unlikely combination to say the least. Sometimes this creative choice pays off, with interesting moments of electronic power and wild piano; sometimes the songs feel like they’re going nowhere, and at worst even feel half finished. TANGK however sparks an interesting question: "In this industry where every little lyric can be scrutinised on social media, who should artists be writing music for? The audience, or themselves?" TANGK is an age-old tale that, if you don’t write for yourself, you’ll struggle to survive.
Although sometimes falling short, TANGK proves who IDLES write music for now, as you must as an artist sometimes. With every single lyric written in the studio at the mic, its clear that TANGK is an album that IDLES felt like they needed to make for themselves. Artists are humans first and foremost, something that’s often completely forgotten in the music industry.
First track Idea 01 is a brilliant start to the album, clearly masterminded by Godrich, with busy piano replacing the common guitar-oriented IDLES that people are used to. Godrich’s influence on tracks like this cannot be understated, with his influence seeming like the major driving factor on much of the tracks throughout. TANGK is a “love album”, but not always in the positive, romantic way. The album sometimes feels more about a necessary love than a romantic love, a very intentional decision.
Next comes Gift Horse, which is one of only a few tracks that people would almost expect from the band, although little of Talbots classic shouts and statements make an appearance. Instead, Joe now sings throughout, and wants the listener to relate through different methods of communication. This album, like Crawler, contains almost no instructive shouting or statements.
3rd Track POP POP POP is probably my favourite on the album, with this time Kenny Beats being the clear influence. This track sounds more like something from The Streets 2002 classic “Original Pirate Material” than anything IDLES have done before, but POP POP POP is TANGK at its best. With its hard bass, looping drums and great vocals, POP POP POP proves that you don’t have to sound the same to sound excellent. Considering all the lyrics were written off the cusp, the lyrical content on songs like POP POP POP is very impressive.
A major issue, however, becomes apparent in the next two tracks Roy and A Gospel. Sometimes on TANGK, at best some songs don’t feel like they have any real direction, at worst some feel completely unfinished. With Talbot writing lyrics on the spot, it can do a disservice to the songs, and these two tracks fall surprisingly short.
The album returns to form on first single Dancer, but with a fairly impactless chorus. Weak choruses are unfortunately something TANGK suffers from throughout, with little in the way of catchy chorus melody or impactful lyrics.
2nd single Grace comes with possibly the best chorus on the album. For its catchy chorus and rememberable lyrics though, Grace falls short in other departments. Much like earlier Roy and A Gospel, Grace never really gets out of first gear, a shame when the ideas and intention of the track have so much possibility. A further issue with TANGK becomes clear by this point: the lack of power from usually commanding drummer Jon Beavis.
Hall & Oates, like Gift Horse, is almost a song that the listener would expect from IDLES, with this track not sounding out of place on previous work Crawler. In comparison though, Hall & Oates falls into many of the same traps as earlier songs on the album. Emotionless lyrics and a poor chorus really hold back many of the songs on TANGK.
Jungle, like Idea 01, is once again the band linking up brilliantly with producer Nigel Godrich. This track excellently combines what IDLES do best with what Godrich does best: huge piano chords mixed with distorted, fuzzy guitar. Unfortunately, songs like Jungle and Idea 01 really illuminate the unfulfilled potential in much of the rest of the album.
The final two tracks on TANGK sum up the album perfectly. First comes Gratitude, with its catchy chorus and quick paced distorted riffs. Gratitude is excellent, with the hits of snare pounding the track through the motions. In comparison however, final track Monolith is many of the weak elements of the album all rounded up and put into one final track. Again, this track doesn’t go anywhere, and if being cynical, seems almost unfinished.
TANGK has a lot of potential, and when it wants to, that potential is captured excellently. However, many of the tracks here feel directionless and uninspiring. This release is sure to split people, but it again comes back to the question at the start: who does an artist write music for? Although sometimes falling short, TANGK feels like a necessary move for the band- for their own wellbeing.
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