release date: Mar. 26, 2012
format: cd
[album rate: 2,5 / 5] [2,68]
producer: Paul Weller, Simon Dine
label: Universal Island Records - nationality: England, UK
Track highlights: 2. "The Attic" - 6. "That Dangerous Age" - 8. "Dragonfly"
11th studio album by Paul Weller follows two years after Wake Up the Nation (Apr. 2020) is once again with producer Simon Dine but is still a bit of a new turning point. The album is Weller's first with a bold use of electronics. Sometimes the blend of pop soul and electro pop / indietronica works out fine or say sufficiently here, as on "The Attic", on "That Dangerous Age", and on "Dragonfly"; however, at other times, which actually is 'mostly', it falls flat like on "Kling I Klang", and on "Sleep of the Serene". The album fared well, sold well, topping the albums chart list in the UK. But to me, this is no less than his least appealing and his least successful solo album to date. It feels like more than a bitter pill to swallow.
Not recommended.
[ allmusic.com 4 / 5, Pitchfork 6,5 / 10, Mojo, 👉The Guardian 3 / 5 stars ]
