- Genre: 'Folk'
- Release Date: '14th October 2022'
Our Rating:
The Sleeping Souls are perhaps best (un)known as the backing band for the ubiquitous and seemingly universally-acclaimed purveyor of folk-punk, Frank Turner. For that, I feel somewhat sorry for them, just as I feel sorry for most bands who provide the backing to supposedly solo artists, or who exist uncredited for various reasons. It’s a pretty thankless task, although no doubt some prefer to stay out off the limelight and appreciate being paid for turning up and playing with none of the other shit, and fair play. And some artists are content to chip away as gigging musicians because it affords them the means to pursue their own projects during down time.
But the fact that The Sleeping Souls are releasing work as a band suggests a certain dissatisfaction, a questing for more whether it’s exposure or royalties.
Listening to this, it can’t be that they feel creatively stifled, that’s for sure, since it’s very much business as usual – which means they’re in it for the glory, or the royalties.
‘Liar Lover’ is a mid-pace acoustic-led indie folk plodder that stabs at anthem but falls short and simply winds up as striving, also-ran averageness. But then, the same is true of Frank Turner, an artist whose appeal has eternally eluded me.
There’s nothing wrong with it, technically or otherwise. It has dynamics, it has all the ingredients, but then, it’s like a loaf of bread that doesn’t rise and ends up a dense chunk that’s edible but lacks the texture and vitality.
