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Tokyo Police Club: Elephant Shell

30th April 2008 | by Aidan Williamson

A cursory look around early opines on "Elephant Shell" will reveal one major theme, the failure to fully hit the mark set for them.

It's ironic that during a recent interview with Strange Glue, that the band claimed they had not been sucked into the whirlwind of the hype machine as largely as other artists, yet still, their very first album comes shrouded in anticipation, an army of second-coming fanatics awaiting eagerly, and for some reason they look disappointed when in steps Justin Lee Collins.

Although the opening statement is probably true for "Elephant Shell", it's misleading in the fact that maybe the mark was set too high, and maybe a band should have room to breathe before being beaten to death with Pitchforks.

Placed under an individual spotlight, most, if not all of the songs present here stand up to scrutiny. They breeze along nonchalantly, wasting no time in delivering their amiable melodies, backed by spiky post-punk inspired riffery, stuttered drum lines and lush keyboard. Frontman Dave Monks whispers his thoughts with crystal clarity, a cross between storyteller and deathbed comforter. Then, ten times out of eleven, it all wraps up before the spectre of the three-minute mark raises its head.

What many will seize upon is the in-depth lyricism of Monks. Utilising phrase reversal, entwined couplets and a vocabulary which would make Richard Whitely impressed in his grave, they could be interpreted as either genius or enormously pretentious. True, on occasion, the vichyssoise of verbiage veers most verbose, yet this is part of the charm of Tokyo Police Club's writing, to compel your audience to make effort to increase their knowledge base (read: pick up a dictionary) in order to grasp your meaning is a welcome challenge in the days of instant satisfaction.

Turning off the spotlight, and taking a step back, there are problems with the album as a whole. Prior to the rather amazing run that commences from "Nursery, Academy", the songs all feel a little too safe, each musician slips into their very own safety zone, never really attempting to distinguish themselves from the crowd of indie-rock. Also, before this point,Monk's delivery never really deviates from the middle-range, sticking with his warm, yet predictable crooning style.

Pacing problems aside though, for a first attempt at writing a full-length album, Tokyo Police Club should be commended, it's clear that they are heading in an interesting direction, so 'remove the roadblocks' and jump on.

Rating:  7 / 10