Herd Runners (Album) - Cherry Ghost

I’ve always felt very pleased to know about the music of Cherry Ghost; it’s not obscure and yet it seems to have passed many people by. Both of the band’s previous studio albums – Thirst For Romance and Beneath This Burning Shoreline – are packed full of stellar songwriting and outstanding arrangements. I’ve never really been one to seek out B-sides, but in the case of Cherry Ghost it seems that quality goes hand in hand with just about everything they touch, and some of my favourite songs of theirs are B-side tracks (‘Four Eyes’, ‘Please Come Home’ and ‘Dancehall To Daybreak’). I saw the band perform live at the Cavern in Exeter back in 2010, a few months after the release of Beneath This Burning Shoreline and ever since that time I’ve eagerly awaited the release of album number three. Sadly it would be a fairly long wait, with very sparse news and updates alluding to when the new album would come out. Prior to the announcement of the latest Cherry Ghost outing, the band’s frontman Simon Aldred released a solo album under the pseudonym Out Cold, which harkened back to the dance music of the 80s. As much as I like Aldred’s songwriting, I gave this one a miss (although it received positive reviews) as it wasn’t really my sort of thing.

Somewhat surprisingly then the announcement of Herd Runners almost passed me by, and I didn’t hear the lead single ‘Clear Skies Ever Closer’ until nearly two weeks after it was released (it turns out I’d ‘liked’ the wrong Cherry Ghost facebook page, and was missing out on all the latest updates). Nevertheless I was delighted to finally have a new Cherry Ghost album to listen to, after a near four year wait.

The album opener, and lead single (the aforementioned) ‘Clear Skies Ever Closer’ is probably the most immediate track on the album. It grabs the listener right from the start, bursting into life and boasting a triumphant, memorable chorus. Tonally, it’s one of the most upbeat numbers the band has ever released, and it is an absolute gem. Aldred has earned comparisons to Frank Sinatra, and this is one of several tracks on this album that I can easily imagine being performed by ‘old blue eyes’ himself.

‘Don’t Leave Me Here Alone’ interestingly slows things down after the bright and pacey opener, and the slow pace continues through ‘Fragile Reign’ and ‘Sacramento’. It’s a very different approach from previous albums, and I think that the album would benefit from a bit of re-ordering: no song needs to be taken off the album, but I think if the tracks were shuffled around it would improve the album’s flow. This doesn’t mean that any of these songs are poor (far from it) but to have three slow-paced tracks in succession is a curious choice. There are some sumptuous vocal hooks in ‘Don’t Leave Me Here Alone’ and ‘Sacramento’ – after a 4AM-style fade-in – contains some great storytelling-lyrics, that are complimented by a subtle, yet layered guitar arrangement.

‘The World Could Turn’ raises the tempo again, and has a solid beat to it, containing some elaborate metaphors. I see it as being like a lighter companion piece to a track like ‘Black Fang’ from the previous album. Then comes the understated masterpiece of Herd Runners: ‘Drinking For Two’ a stunningly poignant love song that somehow manages to find new ways to express age-old sentiments. The simple arrangement enables the lyrics to shine through, it is a fragile, tender ballad: a ‘One For My Baby’ for this generation.

After this comes the title track, a moving nostalgic number about a desire to be a part of the crowd, whilst simultaneously embracing what makes him unique (at least, that’s how I interpreted it). Aldred then takes on a falsetto tone for ‘My Lover Lies Under’, yet another romantic ballad that despite its relatively simple arrangement has a sense of scale to it at the same time. This is another stand-out track from the album – once again showcasing Aldred’s uncanny ability to find fresh approaches to old ideas.

‘Love Will Follow You’ ups the tempo one final time, and is a breezy and enjoyable number; and then all of a sudden we’re at the final track, so soon. ‘Joanne’ has a few shades of ‘Diamond In The Grind’ to it, but is not quite on a par with that number. It is a decent enough track, but it doesn’t feel like an ending to an album.

Overall Herd Runners is another strong album from Cherry Ghost, and although I have a few criticisms, the quality of the content is solid and consistent. I’d expect nothing less from such a reliable group. My only real issues with the album are that the pace during the first half could be improved upon with a bit of reshuffling, and there aren’t a few more tracks on it. Nevertheless, I’m perfectly content with this offering, and am already optimistic about whatever the band release next.