I Am Kloot | ||
| Allmusic Biography : I Am Kloot is an oddball pop trio based in Manchester, England, that consists of vocalist/guitarist John Bramwell, drummer Andy Hargreaves, and guitarist/bassist Pete Jobson. Bramwell used his contacts as a gig promoter to reel in Hargreaves and Jobson from their former bands. A week after their first show (at the same venue Bramwell promoted gigs at), they released their debut single, Titanic/To You. After another single in early 2000, the group signed to Wall of Sound offshoot We Love You. A two-part single for Morning Rain was released in June of 2001, and the full-length Natural History was out by the end of the year. The trio signed a new recording contract with the Echo label and teamed up with producer Ian Broudie to record their self-titled second album, released in summer 2003. Broudie added his textbook production touches to the album, expanding the I Am Kloot sound to provide the perfect framework for Bramwells finely observed lyrical vignettes. The trio undertook their first U.S. tour in 2005 in support of the belated stateside release of I Am Kloot. Shortly afterwards, they released their third European album, Gods and Monsters. The bands fourth full-length outing, I Am Kloot Play Moolah Rouge, arrived in 2008, followed by 2009s B, a compilation of B-sides, rarities, and unreleased songs. Released in 2010, Sky at Night was produced by Craig Potter and Guy Garvey from Elbow. It was their most commercially successful album; it reached number 24 on the U.K. albums chart, and it was also short-listed for the Mercury Prize. Let It All In, the bands sixth album, was issued in early 2013. | ||
 | Album: 1 of 9 Title: Natural History Released: 2001-03-26 Tracks: 15 Duration: 52:16 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 To You (03:16) 2 Morning Rain (03:20) 3 Bigger Wheels (03:29) 4 No Fear of Falling (02:10) 5 Loch (04:33) 6 Storm Warning (03:59) 7 Dark Star (02:22) 8 Stop (03:56) 9 Sunlight Hits the Snow (02:44) 10 Twist (02:57) 11 86 TVs (02:55) 12 Because (07:33) 13 Titanic (03:12) 14 Over My Shoulder (02:59) 15 Stand Another Drink (Proof) (02:47) |
| Natural History : Allmusic album Review : Easily one of the most accomplished bands of the new acoustic movement, I Am Kloot has created one of the better albums in the genre with Natural History. Songwriters John Harold and Arnold Bramwell strike a highly successful balance between folksy acoustic numbers and mini rock epics throughout the albums 12 tracks. Catchy vocal passages crop up left and right, psychedelic guitar passages mingle readily with moments of quiet sublime romance, and the band isnt beyond throwing in the occasional refreshing jazz arrangement. Its not surprising that the music sounds as lush as it does, since Elbow frontman Guy Garvey produced, engineered, and mixed the album, along with offering snippets of harmonica, sound effects, some percussion, and backing vocals. Acoustic guitars, a somber bass, and hushed drums percolate slowly as they twist and twirl around Harold and Bramwells vocals. Imagining I Am Kloot as a darker, acoustic lo-fi Oasis would seem to be entirely appropriate, and not just because theres a resemblance in their Mancunian accents. But this is a mini Oasis that occasionally moonlights in Robyn Hitchcock whimsy. Lyrically, there are loads of bizarre things going on, with disarmingly quirky lines like "Will someone somewhere marry me... to you," "Theres blood on your legs, I love you," and "Twist, snap, I love you," rearing their heads at odd moments. These are clearly chaps who know how and when to turn a killer phrase. As endearingly quirky as some of the songs might be, theres an ample supply of beautiful ballads on hand to vary the mood. Weird near-genius standout tracks "To You" and "Twist" sit perfectly alongside the sweet, perfect "No Fear of Falling" and the eclectic, jazzy wonder of "Sunlight Hits the Snow." One senses that Garvey may be responsible for the occasional lapse into realms a bit too epic, but he and the band always manage to reel songs back in when they get too bombastic. Smart, catchy, at times ramshackle, and at other times desperately atmospheric and exotic, Natural History is a wonderful debut album. | ||
 | Album: 2 of 9 Title: I Am Kloot Released: 2003-09-15 Tracks: 12 Duration: 39:03 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Untitled #1 (04:18) 2 From Your Favourite Sky (02:46) 3 Life in a Day (02:46) 4 Here for the World (03:26) 5 A Strange Arrangement of Colour (02:43) 6 Cuckoo (03:21) 7 Mermaids (03:39) 8 Proof (02:45) 9 Sold as Seen (02:55) 10 Not a Reasonable Man (03:06) 11 3 Feet Tall (03:04) 12 The Same Deep Water as Me (04:09) |
| I Am Kloot : Allmusic album Review : I Am Kloots self-titled sophomore album is an absolutely gorgeous expansion of the dark and fractured sound of the bands debut. Where John Bramwell and company explored twisted love and regret on the relatively sedate and folk-oriented Natural History, I Am Kloot explodes with scuzzy epic rock guitars and jagged basslines, adds ornate backing instrumentation, and fleshes out its songs until they bleed anthemic charisma and emotion. Producer Ian Broudie offers a hand at the production desk, providing a welcome sheen closer to his work with Echo & the Bunnymen than his own Lightning Seeds material. The album feels every bit a grand coming-out party on par with the Verves Urban Hymns, where that band kicked its art into overdrive. Indeed, fans like the Gallagher brothers of Oasis fame and other A-list artists were seen crawling out of the woodwork to praise I Am Kloot and revel in the groups live shows at the time of this albums release, just as they did with the Verve. If the albums overall sound takes on a more neo-psychedelic and heavier feel than the debut, touching on influences such as the Hollies, the Rolling Stones, and the Beatles, and maybe small doses of Sparklehorse and the Beta Band, I Am Kloot thrives most tellingly here on three superb highlights purely of the bands own creation. Album opener "Untitled No. 1" sets things in motion with a poetic combination of Bramwells weary, pretty vocals and fascinating inflection, a spooky piano motif, and Andy Hargreaves shuffling, wonderful drums. "Mermaids" is a chilling slice of sonic perfection as Bramwells vocals slow to a crawl, a rattle of ghostly chains sits uneasily under pristine slabs of shimmering guitars, and a heartbreaking yet subtle chorus makes the song an instant classic. Immediately following "Mermaids" is the beautiful and rousing ballad "Proof," easily one of the prettiest songs of 2003, and along with "Mermaids" creating surely one of the finest one-two punches in ages. I Am Kloot is a marvel of emotion and mood, hitting zero wrong notes and positioning John Bramwell among the finest songwriters of his time. The albums timeless textures and nostalgic feel are likely to bother some listeners who might claim the music is unfashionable. Such a stance only serves to keep those listeners in the dark to some truly wonderful songs. Creating a masterpiece on its second try, I Am Kloot is earmarked as one of the most interesting bands of its time. | ||
 | Album: 3 of 9 Title: Gods and Monsters Released: 2005-04-11 Tracks: 13 Duration: 40:01 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 No Direction Home (02:34) 2 Gods and Monsters (02:04) 3 Over My Shoulder (02:57) 4 An Ordinary Girl (03:06) 5 The Stars Look Familiar (03:47) 6 Strange Without You (02:27) 7 Astray (01:41) 8 Hong Kong Lullaby (02:10) 9 Sand and Glue (04:06) 10 Avenue of Hope (04:41) 11 Dead Mens Cigarettes (02:50) 12 Coincidence (02:39) 13 I Believe (04:54) |
| Gods and Monsters : Allmusic album Review : With a title like Gods & Monsters, one expects I Am Kloot to pull out all the stops on their third album. Sadly, Johnny Bramwell and company seem asleep at the wheel, coasting lazily while offering what feels like 13-rough demos in search of hooks and compelling lyrics. Coming from a band thats known for off-kilter wordplay, musical immediacy, and dazzling changes of pace, these songs feel rushed and uninspired. "Over My Shoulder" might be the lone standout and perhaps the only song that recalls the charm of Natural History and the bright emotion of the bands self-titled second album. This is a band that in its press materials compares itself to Harold Pinters realism in a world of Cecil B. DeMille mock-ups. These press materials also proclaim the bands "misanthropic and surreal wit" as a selling point, but theres nothing of the kind on display here. Instead, Gods & Monsters is an album of straightforward rock, pop, and folk songs that rely more on mood and atmosphere than on songwriting or melodies. The sparse production strives for the mad psychedelic vibes of the Franz Ferdinand set, but with most of the songs coming across like Badly Drawn Boy knock-offs, theres a constant sense that things simply arent jelling. Instead one gets the impression he or she is listening to a series of jam sessions that never get off the ground. That Gods & Monsters isnt as warped and wired as the bands previous efforts shouldnt be mistaken for a newfound musical maturity. Its an album thats a step backward for a band that won its fans over with originality and songcraft. | ||
 | Album: 4 of 9 Title: BBC Radio 1 John Peel Sessions Released: 2006-10-27 Tracks: 11 Duration: 34:18 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Storm Warning (04:12) 2 Twist (03:29) 3 Titanic (03:27) 4 86 TVs (03:04) 5 Stop (04:23) 6 From Your Favourite Sky (03:10) 7 Life in a Day (02:52) 8 This House Is Haunted (03:12) 9 Proof (02:30) 10 Strange Without You (02:25) 11 Coincidence (01:29) |
 | Album: 5 of 9 Title: I Am Kloot Play Moolah Rouge Released: 2008-01-28 Tracks: 10 Duration: 34:19 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 One Man Brawl (03:20) 2 Chaperoned (05:08) 3 Ferris Wheels (03:11) 4 Hey Little Bird (02:47) 5 The Runaways (03:09) 6 Down at the Front (03:56) 7 Someone Like You (03:07) 8 Suddenly Strange (02:59) 9 Only Role in the Town (04:39) 10 At the Sea (02:01) |
 | Album: 6 of 9 Title: B Released: 2009 Tracks: 30 Duration: 1:44:34 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Blue and Bone China (02:49) 2 Asleep at the Wheel (03:36) 3 Fat Kids in Photographs (02:39) 4 Ferris Wheels (demo) (03:39) 5 Tell Me Something (03:36) 6 The Face of Alabaster (06:03) 7 You Gotta Go (03:11) 8 The Great Escape (02:27) 9 Glimmer (04:57) 10 Life in a Day (live) (02:57) 11 Over My Shoulder (demo) (03:00) 12 86 TVs (alternative version) (03:05) 13 Twist (french) (03:20) 14 Dogs Howl (01:59) 1 Blue and Bone China (02:49) 2 Asleep at the Wheel (03:36) 3 Fat Kids in Photographs (02:39) 4 Ferris Wheels (demo) (03:39) 5 Tell Me Something (03:36) 6 The Face of Alabaster (06:03) 7 You Gotta Go (03:11) 8 The Great Escape (02:27) 9 Glimmer (04:57) 10 Life in a Day (live) (02:57) 11 Over My Shoulder (demo) (03:00) 12 86 TVs (alternative version) (03:05) 13 Twist (french) (03:20) 14 Dogs Howl (01:59) 15 I’m a Believer (05:25) 16 The Red Dress (04:24) |
 | Album: 7 of 9 Title: Sky at Night Released: 2010-07-05 Tracks: 10 Duration: 39:28 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify TrackSamples Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Northern Skies (04:05) 2 To the Brink (04:18) 3 Fingerprints (04:33) 4 Lately (03:56) 5 I Still Do (03:03) 6 The Moon Is a Blind Eye (04:07) 7 Proof (02:50) 8 Its Just the Night (03:00) 9 Radiation (06:11) 10 Same Shoes (03:23) |
| Sky at Night : Allmusic album Review : Manchester-based alt-rock trio I Am Kloots fifth long player is sentimental, elegant and drenched in booze, falling somewhere in between the autumnal twilight of the Clientele and the streetlamp glow of Richard Hawley. Sky at Night unfolds over a rainy, world-weary United Kingdom, and vocalist/guitarist John Bramwell, who delivers his lines with appropriate amounts of wit and worry, can sound like an English Willie Nelson, especially on the pub torch song “To the Brink.” As fellow northern Englanders, Elbow members Guy Garvey and Craig Potter know the landscapes that Bramwell and company draw their inspiration from, and the duo’s simple, reverb-heavy production work lends added weight to album highlights “Northern Skies” and “I Still Do,” resulting in a stormy, soulful and nuanced collection of late-night last spins that get better with each rotation. | ||
 | Album: 8 of 9 Title: Let It All In Released: 2013-01-18 Tracks: 10 Duration: 37:41 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify TrackSamples Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Bullets (03:29) 2 Let Them All In (04:03) 3 Hold Back the Night (04:39) 4 Mouth on Me (02:56) 5 Shoeless (02:55) 6 Even the Stars (04:08) 7 Masquerade (02:21) 8 Some Better Day (02:53) 9 These Days Are Mine (05:36) 10 Forgive Me These Reminders (04:36) |
| Let It All In : Allmusic album Review : For this follow-up to I Am Kloots lush and focused 2010 Mercury Music Prize-nominated album Sky at Night, the Manchester indie trio wisely retained Elbows Guy Garvey and Craig Potter as producers. However, while that record gave the Johnny Bramwell-fronted bands sound a game-changing, string-laden makeover -- in the process nodding to Robert Kirbys work for Nick Drakes Bryter Layter -- Let It All In is a comparatively down-to-earth affair. Understated and succinct, with minor flashes of the bands trademark eccentricities, the spotlight here is most certainly on the material rather than how its presented. Bramwells deft acoustic guitar work forms the spine of the set, while the ever tasteful rhythm section supplied by Peter Jobson and Andy Hargreaves is given fair room to shine, just as it was on their outstanding Garvey-produced 2001 debut, Natural History. Theres a sleazy, burlesque feel to the opening "Bullets" -- echoing that albums "Twist" -- which accentuates all the aspects of their knowing, brooding sound that can be regarded as uniquely Kloot: modestly delivered poetic wit, delicately picked guitar, carefully brushed drums, and melodic walking bass. Elsewhere, there are inspired and welcome reminders of Bramwells favorite imagery, most noticeably on the tender and reassuring "Shoeless" where we hear: "Dont let the clouds clutter up your sky/Let the TVs turn off their weary eyes." However, as Let It All In reaches the halfway mark, although the ensuing material is equally inventive, theres the distinct feeling that I Am Kloot have decided to pay direct tribute to many of their northwest England forbears for the remainder of the record. While the elegiac "Even the Stars" approximates Tim Booth singing a different lyric to Joy Divisions "Atmosphere," "Masquerade" unashamedly nails the Rubber Soul-era Beatles sound, right down to the nasally, Lennon-esque vocal delivery. Next, on the equally 60s pop-influenced "Some Better Day," were treated to a full-blown, rainbow-colored, kitchen-sink drama in the vein of a latter period Davy Jones-fronted Monkees track, before "These Days Are Mine" ushers in a "Tomorrow Never Knows"-style drone. So, while overall, I Am Kloots sixth album reads like a heartfelt and stylized ten-chapter celebration of classic pop -- with the opening half consolidating Bramwells position as one of Englands most unjustifiably overlooked songwriters -- its only a minor disappointment that four of the final five chapters included here sail dangerously close to pastiche. | ||
 | Album: 9 of 9 Title: Hold Back The Night Released: 2015-04-13 Tracks: 20 Duration: 1:22:52 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 These Days Are Mine (06:51) 2 Northern Skies (04:06) 3 86 TVs (03:16) 4 Bullets (03:53) 5 One Man Brawl (03:43) 6 Let Them All In (04:23) 7 Shoeless (03:10) 8 Hold Back The Night (05:19) 9 I Still Do (03:30) 10 Fingerprints (04:24) 1 Morning Rain (03:39) 2 To The Brink (04:44) 3 Some Better Day (03:01) 4 Lately (04:10) 5 Dead Mens Cigarettes (03:18) 6 Radiation (06:09) 7 Proof (03:17) 8 Because (05:02) 9 Twist (03:33) 10 From Your Favourite Sky (03:24) |