Album Review: Roddy Woomble – The Deluder

As the face and voice of Scottish rockers Idlewild, Roddy Woomble helped mastermind some of the most beautifully written songs of this writer's generation.

The crashing guitars, poignant lyrics and masterful outros were a thing of beauty, something to be celebrated in what was a largely bland, beige musical era - sorry 00s teenagers.

So to try and find a word to describe this record pains the heart. It promotes itself as 'brooding, atmospheric' - but it is the distinct lack of atmosphere that jars most.

There are some nice moments for sure. Opener Look Back Like Leaving does carry one of those mooted outros. Heartbroken to the extreme, the keys stomp a lonely path which does, despite what is said above, create one of the more atmospheric moments on the record.

The vocals take centre stage on single Like Caruso and there are a few similarities to some of Kasabian's more recent fare. It encapsulates the stripped back nature of a lot of the record nicely, but is one of the few moments it fully comes off.

A lot of what else is on offer feels thin and dull. I'll Meet You By The Memorial has Roddy jarring slightly with the bass. That voice which sounded so delightfully grainy over previous material just doesn't seem to fit - particularly with the annoyingly flicked chorus.

We don't expect Roddy just to rehash and imitate Idlewild material. It is a concept The Verve's Richard Ashcroft has seemed to struggle with in his own solo career.

But at times - such as the bilingual On N'a Plus De Temps - it all just feels a little pretentious. And while the story behind single Jupiter is lovely - Roddy started writing alongside his eight-year-old astronomy-loving son - the end result kind of sounds like it.

It might sound overly harsh at times, but this record just never fully ignites from start to finish.

It is a huge shame - Roddy is usually so good. Shame, there's that word we were looking for as well.

Rating: 3/10

Roddy Woomble plays a set at Moseley Folk Festival on Sunday at Moseley Park.