Okkervil River: The Stand Ins

Double albums are officially a thing of the past. It may have worked for Outkast but it didn't really work out as well for the Red Hot Chilli Peppers. The Foo Fighters' attempt was rocky, and well... let's leave Nelly out of it entirely. So what does a band do when they have so much similar material and only one little Compact Disc to fit it all on?

What Okkervil River have done is slice their material into two parts, released them both within relatively quick succession, allowed the albums artwork to cleverly join together and then simply called them both similar names. Easy.

"The Stand Ins", in many ways, is the older sister to last year's "The Stage Names". It's more mature, slower, less over-the-top. Don't get us wrong it still has the passionate theatrics that they're so good at creating; it's just that they are toned down in nature. More of an Okkervil jog than an Okkervil sprint if you will.

The first, sixth and tenth songs are all short instrumentals that, while sounding quite atmospheric, seem a little pointless and considering there are only eleven songs on the whole album, it shows how little material there actually is instead of stretching the album a little further. This little niggle seems negligible when held up to the overall quality of the record but it's one of a few issues which all add up over time.

First actual song "Lost Coastlines" is a good introduction to the means by which the rest of the album falls into place and sets the tone nicely. What's noticeable is how they manage to avoid cliche with such sleight of hand; a change of tempo here; taking out a snare there, it's all very clever and extremely effective.

The likeness of this record and The Stage Names runs in its blood, you can feel it when listening to the confident vocals and the grandiose, sweeping music. It's definitely under the same family tree but again something doesn't feel quite right. There's something of a B-Side feel to the album. The overall sound of the music is still fantastic but the heart of the music is still busy fighting its little brother. It is as if this album was made to please those who found "The Stage Names" too much and vice versa.

Case in point is mid-album track "Blue Tulip". It's extravagant and beautiful but falls slightly flat and is too lengthy to keep up the aforementioned extravagance. "On Tour With Zykos" again, has its perks, but it's a slow burner. A 'Catherine Wheel' as opposed to the jumbo rocket firework persona which "The Stage Names" embodied.

Maybe it's unfair to rate this against its little, brattier brother but it's just frustrating when he [the little brother] was just so much fun. Then again, everyone has to grow up sometime and by the sound of things, Okkervil River have just invested in their own apartment with en-suite bathroom with the latest 4x4 parked pristinely in the driveway.