Looking at an excellent album
After 3 ½ years 'Mesh' now present their next fully loaded album 'Looking Skyward'. This is what fans anticipated to listen to: 'Mesh' styled typical guitar/piano Synth Pop songs in perfection.
The whole album is super catchy at the first approach. Actually you can buy blindly a 'Mesh' record and you know what you get: First class Synth Pop that won't disappoint you.
A classic opening
The opening track 'My Protector' is a somehow-instantly-familiar-song. Here you get a classic, excellent 'Mesh' song. 'The Last One Standing' is a perfect song for dancing in a dark disco – catchy tunes underlaid by an up-tempo beat.
The subsequent song 'The Traps We Made' sounds much darker. Very well engineered is here the subtle implementation of typical dubstep samples, without using its beats.
The single 'Kill Your Darlings'
The song 'Kill Your Darlings' is definitely one of the most outstanding and heaviest tracks on the record. This one is a guaranteed club hit! Rough electro guitars and noise sample elements are combined with melodic lyrics and memorable tunes.
Brilliant, musical surprises
'Runaway' comes with a big bass beat and a slight 80s vibe. Is this track danceable? Absolutely yes! With 'Before This World Ends' the band gives us a fantastic ballad to drift away into our very own dreams. The song 'Two + 1' comes up with an unusual wobbly-ish sound, which resolves itself towards the end. This makes the song sound very diversified in itself but also underlines the lyrics perfectly.
Powerful and energetically loaded comes 'The Ride' along. With less use of guitars this song relies on its beats. And the beats are doing their job just fine: get ready for spontaneous dance outbursts! 'The Fixer' is again a gorgeous up-tempo song with the atmosphere of the 'In This Place Forever' times. And – thank God – the last song isn't the cliché piano ballad! 'Once Surrounded' is a raw electronic song with a serious mood.
Verdict for 'Looking Skyward'
'Mesh' performs in the same league as bands like 'Camouflage', 'De/Vision' or 'Beborn Beton'. For 20 years the boys from Bristol have been providing us with grand independent Synth Pop music. And with their new album 'Looking Skyward' they landed on the right airport again. Get ready for take-off with this new album now!
By the way, this album also made it into our article ‘The best Synth Pop and genre-related albums 2016‘. Read now.
Track By Track Rating
More 'Mesh'
If you love Mesh as we do, don't miss the article 'What is the best Mesh album ever?'.