I cannot stop listening to this album!
From the CD player in my car to my home to my hotel room here as I sit on vacation, it goes with me wherever I go. I listen to it incessantly and am already planning to see the boys as soon as they come through town.
So who are The Rakes, you ask? Bowie meets The Buzzcocks? Devo meets Steve Harley? I pose to you this question, “Does it matter?” The Rakes have such shining talent that I think it would minimize it by attempting to compare them to others. These four guys from London have created a high-energy masterpiece that’s a boon to the entire U.K. scene.
Capture/ Release is an art rock epic. With honest lyrics and hard-to-miss cockney, working class attitude, this album is approachable by anyone. Take for example the song, “22 Grand Job” (a song about lead singer Alan Donohoe’s search for gainful employment) or the track, “Retreat” (a song filled with the depression of a 9-to-5 existence). Each of the stories can easily connect to struggles mirroring our own. Set to entrancing highly danceable beats with mellow bass lines and an undeniable punk delivery, Capture/ Release will prove itself to be a staple in anyone’s music collection.
