The Coral - Sea of Mirrors

“From as far back as I can remember, I've been a drifter
The drifting life is a lonely life but the only life I know”

Twenty-one years on since the Wirral outsiders stormed the scene with their anarchic self-titled anarchic debut, they released ‘Sea of Mirrors’ via Run On and Modern Sky UK Records back in September.

Image and artwork courtesy of Perspective Communications.

After a brief dip on 2010’s ‘Butterfly House’, The Coral have delivered four studio albums of remarkable substance. The heavy psyche of ‘Distance Inbetween’ and folksy-cum-La’s melodies of ‘Coral Island’ lead that pack. So, where did ‘Sea Of Mirrors’ stack up?

During the ‘10s, their fine albums explored new but quite natural avenues of their sound. Then, on ‘Coral Island’, they ever so slightly nudged their melodic poise toward the weird and wonderful sonic of ‘The Coral’ and ‘Magic Medicine’. Now, on ‘Cycles Of The Seasons’ and ‘North Wind’, their mature worldview steps resplendently back into their youthful realm. The former looked at ‘Calendars and Clocks’ and ‘Don’t Think You’re The First’ and nodded in approval. Meanwhile, the caressing beauty of ‘North Wind’ feels like a fully formed and joyfully content ‘Careless Hands’.

With Coral Island being a double album and ‘Sea of Mirrors’ being accompanied by a physically released only album, one has to wonder just how much The Coral has in the arsenal. The two tracks mentioned have great folk orchestration calling Weller’s fine reinvention on ’22 Dreams’, an almost double album. The beauty, peculiarity, and effortlessness of ‘Sea of Mirrors’ never deviates from this state of wisdom and quality.

However, there are several moments of darkness throughout the album. ‘Ocean’s Apart’ captures why fans love their rebellious ways:

“It's been the same since I was a little kid
When I see the desert I see an ocean
When I see an ocean I see a desert
Each the image of the other
A sea of mirrors, and here I am
Caught between both the form and the reflection
Between fact and fiction”

The torment of not fitting in and drifting relationships as a consequence has taken its toll:

“I love you, yes, I love you
From your smile to your scars
But we're oceans apart”

This ode to fallen stars earning their living at the arse end of their industry sparkles when Cillian Murphy recites Nick Power’s poetry in the closing stages. It gives it an innocence that eases the sense of regret permeating throughout. Blink, and you’d miss the anguish amid the cinematic orchestration. Latter-day Weller and Richard Hawley’s enriching souls swoon across horizons here to offer hope amid the despair.

The title track, ‘Sea of Mirrors,’ continues the feeling of uneasiness, of not knowing if up is down. Twenty-one years as outsiders, as pioneering drifters, has left them feeling “no help can be found when the world sinks into the ground”. The strings are beset with the creative grandeur of Love (the band), which soundtrack the bands struggle to co-exist:

“From my window seat, I see a stranger sleep
Visions of a war long since past
An enemy, a friend, a battle 'til the end
The flags have been lowered to half-mast”

No matter the inner turmoil, The Coral remains outwardly mesmeric. This is no traditional journey back to the start, but the fleeting moments they pop into their beatnik spirit are delivered with middle-aged suffering and a creative masterfulness to revel in. ‘Sea Of Mirrors rightly takes it place in the upper echelons of their catalogue.

The Coral – Faceless Angel

Merseyside’s favourite sons, The Coral, have returned with their first new music in three years. ‘Faceless Angel’ is the lead-off single from their upcoming double album ‘Coral Island’. Recorded at the legendry Parr Studios in Liverpool, it marks the five pieces next adventure in pop-cum-psychedelia. Will it stack up?

With the swagger of Duane Eddy and the beguiling pop of Lee Hazlewood, you bet your life it stacks up. Johnny Cash’s abrasive licks are met with James Skelly’s iconic vocals. Cool, crisp and indebted to the 60s (and Wirral), Skelly tells tales of forlorn seaside towns and the characters within, whose identities, fade into obscurity.

The Horrors classic ‘Primary Colours’, brought the wild and dank side of the British coast to life. Here, The Coral have painted the fall out of those heady days. Melancholic and despairing, alive but not living, they conjure the images of grey landscapes trapped in yesteryear.

It’s nineteen years since they burst onto the scene with their debut album. They show no signs of slowing down creatively.

The Coral - Distance Inbetween

The boys from the Wirral have returned after a six year hiatus to release their 6th studio album ‘Distance Inbetween’. Previous efforts ‘Butterfly House’ and ‘Roots & Echoes’, whilst good efforts, were not great so, is ‘Distance Inbetween’ worth the wait?

A return of oddness to their production to supplement their god-given talent of crafting pop songs is back and, as a result, is their edge. They stray into pastures new as well, experimenting with prog rock styles inside three and four-minute tracks.

Leading the charge are the tracks ‘Connector’, ‘Chasing The Tail Of A Dream’, and ‘Million Eyes’. It’s a tough call as to whether the production or James Skelly’s vocals add the more sinister tones to ‘Connector’. In four minutes, The Coral have opened their album with dark psychedelia, haunting prog, and quality melodies.  

Shining through the mesh of darkness is ‘Miss Fortune’. For any band starting out today, this is a fine example of what years of dedication can bring. It is simultaneously fresh and familiar, weird and accessible. This is how to create an identity and cement it into pop culture.

Not content with just reaffirming themselves to the world, The Coral have set about introducing key aspects of prog into their pop songs. ‘Beyond The Sun’ uses spellbinding organs, allowing this track to float away into the ether. Meanwhile, ‘Distance Inbetween’ pays homage to Dave Gilmour’s archetypal Floyd sound with a slow build and superb solo release.

This is a fine return from the Wirral outfit. To remain pop-friendly and ‘out there’ is a credit to their talent and work ethic. This is laudable in an era where most play it safe as the money is scarce to be seen.