ALBUM: OFFICIAL SECRETS ACT // UNDERSTANDING ELECTRICITY
ALBUM REVIEW: Official Secrets Act – Understanding Electricity
Words: Gareth O’Malley
Can I get this out of the way first? I can? Good. ‘The Girl From The BBC’ – that’s the most recent single from Official Secrets Act, in case you’re wondering - is awful. In fact, the best thing about this song, with its irritating lyrics (‘I like her, she likes me’ – that’s the chorus. Well done. Now shut up.) and general forgettability, is when it finishes. Harsh, yes, but I really don’t see how this could be considered a good advertisement for the album. At all. It’s a relief, then, that there are more hits here than misses, and that ‘…BBC’ is the worst thing on offer here.
What’s interesting is that this can be seen as a record of two halves. One half is your upbeat indie-pop side, and the other is your darker, more introspective side. This has effects on ‘Understanding Electricity’, both good and bad. Opener ‘Mainstream’ showcases OSA’s strengths, and is a great track, with an anthemic feel to it. Bass-driven ‘So Tomorrow’ follows, probably the catchiest thing on offer here, and that really is saying something, as this album is a hook-laden affair. “Everything’s better with a girlfriend / Who is ten times cooler than you are” – so lead singer Tom Charge Burke reckons, at least.
‘Little Birds’ sounds like it is going to be a downbeat track at first, but soon picks up, allowing Burke to showcase his voice – “You cry for the night to arrive, and you cry for the morning”. Next up is ‘Hold The Line’, and I must say, the verse melody is brilliant. The lyrics here are some of the best on the album – “As the world collapses around our ears / I play guitar to Tears for Fears” – made me smile, at least. 
Halfway there, now, and album centrepiece ‘A Head For Herod’ tells us that ‘Understanding Electricity’ is switching gears. A more laid-back affair, with the focus, this time, on Alex McKenzie’s drumming, which is simple, yet effective. This sounds quite like ‘Sing’-era Blur, although I’m also hearing some Interpol in this track, would you believe. It is a stunning listen, all six-and-a-half minutes of it.
‘Bloodsport’, another bass-driven track, albeit a much darker affair than ‘So Tomorrow’, shows us another side of Official Secrets Act, a side that I’d like to see more of in future.
‘Under the Flightpath’, the album’s closing track, sounds almost jazzy in places, another track that allows Burke’s vocals to take centre stage. Underpinned by some great drumming and a loping bass line, over the course of its six minutes it manages to continue building, yet restrains itself, leaving as quietly as it arrived.
This is an album that requires multiple listens. I should know; I dismissed it as bog-standard indie pop at first, but it revealed itself to me over time, and is continuing to do so. There’s something for everyone here, whether you prefer the instantly gratifying, or the slow-burners. This is a much more diverse album than it seems at first glance, and what’s more, it is a very good one. I’ll be keeping my eye on this lot.
7.3
Official Secrets Act – So Tomorrow (zShare)
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