While I have been busy obsessing over this supergroup’s 2008 release, I’d be a fool to never check out The Last Shadow Puppets 2016 effort, Everything You’ve Come to Expect. And before you question me or yourself, yes, you are reading those album release years correctly. Approximately eight years after the first time they came together, they decided to go and make musical bliss again. And I’m here for it!
The more I dig into this band the more fascinated I am by them. While it was still Miles Kane, Alex Turner, and James Ford on this record, this time around they added Mini Mansions’ Zach Dawes to play the bass. He’s a wonderful addition, especially in a live setting. I think the four members is a nice way to round things out, and they clearly all love what they’re doing here. As it turns out, this record wasn’t intentionally going to happen. Both Turner and Kane got together to write a song for Miles’ solo effort when their lead single, “Aviation,” was born. Instead, they decided it sounded more like a Puppets tune and just sort of ran with it from there.
Time equals maturity, and while I thought their first record was wonderfully cohesive, this time around they didn’t stick quite so hard to one roadmap. I thought there was more variety but ultimately an amalgamation of sound. More prominent this time was the presence of more “ballad”-type tunes, which was a welcome mix-up even if they weren’t my favorite tracks. Overall, I also heard less strings. Don’t get me wrong, they were definitely in every single track, but perhaps a little more sparingly and subdued. With that being said, I did very clearly hear a saxophone in at least one song which was very cool! Finally, when it came to vocals this time around, I think Alex was featured more heavily, although there were plenty of duets where their harmonies shone through. When Kane was singing though, it was generally with a softer edge to it, which was cool to hear in contrast to older songs he was featured on. Really both of these guys have quite the range!
Now, let’s get into some of my favorites off of the record! “Element of Surprise” really stands out to me because it had a bit of a disco, or rather a groovy vibe to it. he very popular “Used to Be My Girl” again reminds me of a James Bond tune, so I agree with the masses when they say they should be tapped to write and record the next one! Both “Pattern” and “Bad Habits” had the catchiest bass lines, which is a thing that usually hooks me especially if they kick in right at the start. That’s an attention grabbing move for me, for sure. While I loved all of those tunes, my absolute favorite has to be the lead single “Aviation.” The harmonies on that, the guitar riff…perfection! I think it’s quite funny how my favorite songs off of both of their records happen to be the first ones written for them. A final standout also has to be the crooning in “Miracle Aligner,” which almost sounds nothing like the rest of their catalogue.
Just like with The Age of the Understatement, Everything You’ve Come to Expect has impressed the pants off of me! I feel like a fool for only just now giving them a fair shake, but I’m so glad I did at all! I can only hope that they feel like enough time has passed and that they’d like to make music together again. Having recently read that the plan was to make a trio of albums as a band, I am at least hopeful for one final go from The Last Shadow Puppets (although I’m secretly hoping for more). Go listen to these guys already!