Frightened Rabbit - Swim Until You Can't See Land [Single]

Fat Cat Records

November 19, 2009, 06:47 PM

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by deadletteroffice [More from this Author]

Buy Frightened Rabbit - Swim Until You Can't See Land [Single] From Amazon.com

Selkirk's Frightened Rabbit are an outfit who have been touring the indie circuit for a few years now, making the most of their friendship with fellow scots Biffy Clyro and their second album's widespread critical acclaim. Taken from their forthcoming album "The Winter of Mixed Drinks," 'Swim Until You Can't See Land' rests a lilting guitar line over subtle percussion and a gorgeous melody. Anyone familiar with Bright Eyes more alt-country tinged efforts should be right at home here. Singer Scott Hutchinson's thick Scottish brogue lends the song an even deeper resonance that helps ground the cryptic lyrics.

The chorus is uplifting and deflating in equal measure and throughout the whole song there's a gentle swell in instrumentation that builds to a climax at the final chorus with horns, strings and a massed choir seeing the song to it's conclusion. It's just a lovely little song, it doesn't profess to re-write the rule book and unless some forward thinking advertising company decides to use the song to sell mobile phones (stranger things have happened) it's not like it'll be storming the charts, but since when has that been a mark of quality?

The B-Side (tentatively titled 'Fun Stuff') pares things back slightly with Hutchinson taking the reigns alone with just an acoustic guitar for the first minute before an ambient choir of instruments fades into focus. It's a softly melancholic song seemingly about disappointing sex ("there's nothing sadder than sad sad sex") which wouldn't have sounded out of place on Sigur Ros's last record and shows a more esoteric side to the band that I'd love to see more of on the album when it drops next year.

All in all an impressive release and another winner from Fat-Cat records!