Editors - In This Light and on This Evening Review

Know this: you will never read an article, review, or interview involving the Birmingham, England band Editors that doesn’t include the words “Joy Division”. You might not even squeak by without reading a thing or two about Interpol (the other band who can’t be mentioned without invoking the J-word). Anyone who listens to rock today knows that Joy Division’s influence is so powerful and vast that it has actually become tiresome and annoying. And Editors vocalist Tom Smith, along with Interpol’s Paul Banks, knew the job was dangerous when he took it, being the leader of the pack for this new generation of singers for whom it appears mandatory to pass an Ian Curtis Proficiency Exam. When their records stop selling, they can go into business for themselves teaching a prep class at the Learning Annex.

But perhaps Editors have become tired and annoyed too, and are ready to stop hearing about how much they sound like the band that clearly inspired them. Their third CD,In This Light and on This Evening, is a noticeable departure from the formula they perfected on their critical smash of a debut, The Back Room (2005), and the follow-up An End Has a Start (2007). The tight, angular confessionals of their debut gave way to more expansive, arena-ready sounds that drew different comparisons, this time to acts like U2 and Coldplay. On In This Light, the electronica has come to the forefront. Editors have already allowed us to brood in our bedrooms, and rock out with our lighters aloft. Now they want us to dance....full text Editors have experienced success in terms of sales and audience numbers, but their gloom-laced indie-rock has often been heard as a retread of what’s come before – a watered-down Joy Division for the masses, despite it packing a greater melodic punch than their melancholic forebears. For their third album, the Birmingham four-piece have addressed this criticism head on, unashamedly crafting their ‘most Joy Division’ record yet.

And that’s no bad thing: by embracing what they’re evidently good at – subtly reworking records from personal collections – Editors have struck gold on In This Light…, albeit between mining little of note on a couple of lacklustre tracks. Said skippable selections aside – the alarmingly over-dramatic single Papillon, the shonky lyricism of Like Treasure – this nine-track affair finds its makers exhibiting a self-confidence previously masked by tried-and-tested pop hooks. Their risks here, however slight, do pay dividends.

The opening title track is a phenomenal way to begin proceedings. An electronic pulse – think the start of Franz Ferdinand’s Take Me Out given a Kraftwerk once-over – parts to allow frontman Tom Smith to state, plaintively: “In this light, and on this evening / London’s become the most beautiful thing I’ve seen”. It’s a track to oppose A Weekend in the City, Bloc Party’s 2007 album of capital city tension and paranoia, and a stirring, teasing number that layers noise upon noise until its climax, a reprise of that pulse, sounds remarkable for its delicateness....full text Tom Smith: “In my opinion the great bands evolve over the course of their careers and take risks…this album will alienate some Editors fans, it will split opinion…good."

Editors release new album ‘In This Light And On This Evening’ next month. Following on from the guitar-y epics of ‘The Back Room’ and ‘An End Has A Start’, ‘In This Light…’ is a radical departure for the Birmingham quartet, featuring minimal guitar in favour of synth soundscapes. Over the course of the last few months, frontman Tom Smith has been shedding out some fairly precocious inspirations for the new material, one of them being the soundtrack to the Terminator films. As far-fetched as that might sound, our First Listen on ‘In This Light…’ reveals a brave band looking to the future and unafraid of change, even if, like Tom says, it might mean they lose a few fans along the way…

‘In This Light And On This Evening’
From the very first note of the opening song, it’s clear Editors have broken away from their previous sound, with the title track setting the scene for something more electro-epic. The pumping note that drives this track is an unrecognisable trait, and even when Tom first croaks “I swear to God…”, his vocals sound haunted and uncomforting, but it all gels well. After a tense three minutes of synths and piano, a climactic ending of distorted bass and drums unfolds. A bold introduction, for sure....full text