Beggars Banquet Us
2006
Film School
About This Album
Since the release of Film School's 2001 album A Brilliant Career, post-punk-inspired indie rock bands have gone from being hip to common, and it would be easy to write off the band's second, self-titled album as riding the wake of the trend. However, Film School is a strong album that deserves more than being written off as just the work of post-punk wannabes. The band manages to find its own niche among its contemporaries: more evocative than the National, less bleak than Editors, and not nearly as melodramatic as Interpol, Film School's music is actually more varied than that of their peers, even though they're drawing from the same pool of influences. The band hails from San Francisco, but Film School's heart belongs to Manchester: though they claim inspirations ranging from the Who to drone metal to electronica, it's Joy Division and Echo & the Bunnymen who shape their music the most, particularly on "On & On"'s precise, angular basslines, glamorously dour vocals, and alternately shimmering and spiky guitars. The band makes sure its big, atmospheric sound doesn't dissolve into the ether completely by anchoring epics like "11:11" with brighter, catchier songs such as "Harmed," "Pitfalls," and "Breet," which recalls the Cure with its bouncy bassline and forlorn lyrics.
Track List (try tracks 3,4,5,7 and 10)

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