Album Review

Motion Picture Soundtrack – The Shapes We Fear Are Of Our Own

• 26th Feb 2010

If they were to use ‘The Shapes We Fear Are Of Our Own’ as a movie soundtrack, the film would have to fall somewhere in the emotional range of ‘Brokeback Mountain’ and ‘American History X’.

Motion Picture Soundtrack’s evocative sound will leave a lasting impression, and is best avoided if you’re already in a slump – Alastair’s haunting voice and the long, intense instrumentals the band swell into a crescendo of tormented sound could leave you feeling fragile.
First release ‘Departures’ is one of the more upbeat tracks, with louder, faster vocals but it still has an urgent, dismayed quality to it.

Recently released single ‘Glass Figures’ is passionate and persistent, with Alastair hitting notes so high you’ll get goosebumps, and crashing percussion that makes this song more hard-hitting and less easy-listening. This contrasts with the use of soft piano melodies (as in ‘Mirrors’), contributing to every track’s ability to catch the attention, and affect the mood of, any room.
The final piece of the expertly crafted jigsaw is the lyrics; as deep and dark as titles such as ‘Faults of A Realist’ suggest, the Canterbury gentlemen are clearly intellectually, as well as musically, gifted. Powerful and moving, fans of The Editors and Elbow will find themselves particularly swept up by the dramatic fruits of MPS’s labour.