Album Review

Thomas Tantrum – Mad By Moonlight

• 30th Jun 2011

Apparently a concept album about lack of sleep, this sophomore effort from indie favourites Thomas Tantrum follows 2008’s acclaimed debut. That self-titled album accrued a fair amount of good will – good will that this album is strong enough to build on.

“Sleep”, the lead single, is a good indication of what Thomas Tantrum are about – gorgeous melodies belted out by magnetic frontwoman Meg Thomas, coupled with infectious, stripped-down riffage and building to very big, very pretty, choruses. It’s a formula deadly in its simplicity.

Among the varied influences listed by the press release, the most overly evident in the songs of Mad by Moonlight is The Cure, a band to which the stellar “Face the Music” owes its sparkly riffs and vocal stylings. That’s not to say that there’s anything derivative about Thomas, whose personality bleeds onto every track, imbuing Mad by Moonlight with angsty indie chick quirk.

Other tracks of note include the searing “on the phone” and the blissful mellower tracks, “All in your head” and “Supermodel” which end the album, proving that sometimes it is better to fade away. All in all, this is a remarkably adept and assured second effort which finds Thomas Tantrum’s muse on song and in rude health.