Neil Ainger discovers a typically sophisticated album of delightful art pop from the Sunderland siblings
Rating: 4/5 Memphis Industries Released: 11.10.24
by Neil Ainger
Field Music – Limits Of Language. Coverart
After four years working primarily on other projects, Sunderland brothers Peter and David Brewis are back with a re-energised and sharp new Field Music record. The band’s sophisticated art pop sensibilities with progressive technical flourishes is ever-present, and their diverse range of influences continue to be clear to identify, from XTC and Talking Heads to Roxy Music and Peter Gabriel. They also channel a new wave Beatles on Turn The Hours Away, and there’s some funk rock creeping into tracks such as The Guardian of Sleep.
The production is crisp and clean, resulting in powerful harmonies and melodies that pack a mighty punch. Refreshed and refocused, Limits of Language is a strong offering from a band with 20 years in the game, teasing a potential purple patch of form.
