The Second I’m Asleep. The Boxer Rebellion

Today and tomorrow I am paying attention to two bands that in my mind are connected because of the kind of music they make, The Boxer Rebellion and The Twilight Sad. Although there are noticeable differences, both play music containing pathos and both have one foot firmly in the 1980s rock of bands like U2, Simple Minds and Big Country. Besides, both were on my long list but did not make it to the blog after their albums' release but do after the CDs were sent to me and I started playing them a lot. So let's take a closer look with first The Boxer Rebellion.

I had planned to start my review that I know The Boxer Rebellion only from that one song, 'Diamonds'. Checking to be certain, I found that I've reviewed the album 'Ghost Alive' from 2018, also the last album to be released before The Second I'm Asleep. I have to own up here and to quote our former prime minister Rutte, I have no active memory ever to have listened to the album. Chances are this will change with The Second I'm Asleep. What I've heard is more than worthwhile to listen to again.

The Boxer Rebellion formed a quarter of a century ago in London and is releasing records since 2005. This is the band's seventh studio album. Based on my knowing 'Diamonds', a song that charted in The Netherlands and is a staple in the yearly Top 2000 fest at the end of the year, not much seems to have changed since its release. The Boxer Rebellion plays a dreamy kind of indie rock with musical parts that meander throughout the song. For reference, Canadian acts like Patrick Watson, City + Colour and Half Moon Run come to mind, with Dutch band Loupe as a good contender as well. The Boxer Rebellion fits effortlessly in this list.

Promo photo: Ry Cox

The music on The Second I'm Asleep is dreamy but has grit to the dream. A dream that makes an immediate impression without turning the dream into a nightmare. The swaths of sounds synths produce in a song like 'This House' and the voice of singer Nathan Nicholson are interspersed by the tough hits on the snare drum and the piano notes that bring dreamers back to reality immediately. Drummer Piers Hewitt has the tendency to keep the band on track throughout the album. The song is extremely rich by the way, like most songs are. So much is happening musically that my ears have a hard time keeping up. A highlight of The Second I'm Asleep. The surprise is the Massive Attack like triphop influenced 'Second Guess'. The song works really well in the context of the album.

Some might say that the album sounds over-familiar, and not just for The Boxer Rebellion but in general. I've even read negative associations to the title of the album. This may all be. In my ears The Second I'm Asleep sounds urgent, a record by a band that has something to prove and just does. After a hiatus of eight years one tends to speak of a comeback album. Despite having only one song to compare it to, the comeback is successful because of the tightness of the dreamy music and that grit it holds in most of the songs. This band is back alright.

Wout de Natris - van der Borght

 

You can order the album on the band's website:

https://theboxerrebellion.com/products/the-second-i-m-asleep-cd