Mew
No more stories/are told today/I'm sorry/they washed away//no more stories/the world is grey/I'm tired/let's wash away
Sony/BMG
It is finally here. It took Danish masters of experimental, ethereal pop a whole four years to release a follow-up to the internationally well-received "And the glass handed kites". In the meantime Mew have become a trio. Bassist Johan Wohlert left the band in 2006 in order to become a father. This new album, which bears a poem for a title, finds Mew working again with Rich Costey, who produced their 2003 album "Frengers" and has worked with bands such as Muse, Interpol, Franz Ferdinand and Glasvegas.
Jonas Bjerre's unusually high-pitched voice remains emblematic of the band's sound, though "No more stories..." is, on the surface, slower-paced, more approachable and less complex than its predecessor. On the other hand, it is also dreamy, at times pompous, with countless mood changes and a complete absence of obvious hooks. "Repeater beater" and the single "Introducing palace players" (which, by the way, has a spectacular and very enigmatic video clip) are the two best tracks, while the epic "Cartoons and macreme wounds" is an undisputed highlight. The album's reverberated, multilayered arrangements are compelling, and although "No more stories..." tries to be brighter than "And the glass handed kites", it miserably fails in the end. On top of that, I still haven't got the slightest clue what Mew are trying to communicate with their lyrics. All in all, with their newest effort Mew seem darker, more distant and incomprehensible than ever before. And precisely that's their beauty.
- Vasilis Panagiotopoulos
