Up At The Lake (2004)
Reviews
Q Magazine (June 2004)
North Country survivors deliver Noel rock classic.
Eight hit and miss studio albums in, and The Charlatans finally release their masterpiece. After dabbling with slick Los Angeles funk and high falsetto on 2001's Wonderland, singer Tim Burgess returns to normal pitch here, with the band's stripped down groove recalling Booker T & The MG's at their stomping peak. Steeped in classic rock. Watch You In Disbelief hits a Honky Tonk Woman hook, while Loving You Is Easy (sung by keyboardist Tony Rogers) manages to successfully combine the Byrds and Carly Simon. Throughout there's such a huge feel good swagger that it's impossible not to be swept along it it's wake.
Rating 4/5
Loaded (June 2004)
The Charlatans have been knocking out quality albums for 14 years with minimal fuss. And while it won't go down in history as a Charlatans Classic, 'Up At The Lake' still has plent of the old spriit - even if Tim Burgess's love affair with California means there's too much MOR sounding guitars and Simon & Garfunkel - inspired harmonies.
The Observer (25 April 2004)
Back from LA Wonderland, the Charlies go all British again
More than anything, the Charlatans' new album is evidence of their ability to adapt and thrive. After the electrifying soul-rock of Wonderland, this is a very British-sounding album. Tim Burgess's love of Dylan and country shines through, but the pop-psychedelic vibes of 'Bonafide Treasure', beat-boom balladry of 'Try Again Today' and maximum R'n'B of 'Apples And Oranges' ground this album in the classic Sixties tradition. Add to such an array of deft new tricks Burgess's scorching yet pained paean to deceased keyboard player Rob Collins, 'Blue For You', and the moving Tony Rogers-penned 'Loving You Is Easy', and it's little wonder that the Charlatans keep on keepin' on.
Rating: 3/5
Joe Muggs (The Telegraph May 2004)
The Charlatans have fought through many scenes and fads, through musical transformations and losing members to madness or prison, yet they've always managed to keep a very respectable core audience at home and worldwide. For their loyal army of fans, this new album of-retro-rocking will be a major event, but somehow the band seem never to have a huge impact on the wider musical scene.
It's certainly not for want of passion: this record oozes knowledge of and dedication to the great moments of rock'n'roll history. Whether it's the Kinks-y swing of Bonafide Treasure, the Stones-do-disco of Feel The Pressure, or the dirty boogie of High Up Your Tree and Watch You In Disbelief, the riffs and harmonies are full of authenticity, guts and heartfelt playing, and the production glitters. The only thing lacking is clear identity. Tim Burgess's voice falls somewhere between Liam Gallagher, Ian Brown and Bobby Gillespie, and the melodies, though fresh, are not gripping. None of this will matter to the thousands who will take this to their hearts.
Mike Pattenden (The Times May 2004)
Where do you go after you've been to Wonderland? In The Charlatans case it appeared they might have nowhere left to turn after releasing their snake hipped album of neon-lit rock'n'soul in 2001.
In it's triumphant wake the members went their separate ways, possibly, it was rumoured, for good. Tim Burgess mase a solo album of countryfied folk, I Believe; the guitarist Mark Collins toured with Starsailor; and the keyboardist Tony Rogers turned to production.
Eventually the quest for a fresh direction brought the band home. Up At The Lake was written largely by Burgess and Collins in a cottage on Bodmin Moor and recorded at their own studios in Cheshire. It's The Charlatans streamlined, stripped down to their core elements. There are no loops, backing girls, horn sections or hoopla, just strong songwriting and rock-solid playing.
The title track hits the ground running and they keep pace with the edgy Feel The Pressure with clattering drum sounds, courtesy of The Chemical Brothers. However, as Up At The Lake settles it only gets better.
Their ability to forge a fine pop song remains reassuringly intact - High Up Your Tree, with its keening harmonies, chiming guitar and soaring chorus, is one; I'll Sing You A Hymn, with its echoes of Lady, Lady, Lay, is another. The great revelation this time, though, is Roger's input, three songs that match anything else here, particularly the tender, Brian Wilson-style Loving You Is Easy.
Unearthing another fine songwriter after 15 years is the sign of a band going from strength to strength.
Rating 4/5
Dave Simpson (The Guardian May 2004)
The British love an underdog, which may explain why the Charlatans have made it to their eighth album despite a death, an imprisonment, a bout of testicular cancer, a swindling accountant and a bassist who, following a nervous breakdown, came to rehearsals clutching carrier-bags of dog food.
However, their success has been equally based around the indefinable joie de vivre that vocalist Tim Burgess brings to even their most ostensibly melancholy songs. Sensibly, Burgess has abandoned the curious falsetto of 2001's Wonderland in favour of his trademark (or Ian Brown's trademark) nasal whine, while the band have responded with some of their finest rollicking grooves.
High Up In Your Tree boasts a super-sweet melody; elsewhere they rampage through everything from country rock to Carly Simon. By the time keyboardist Tony Rogers takes lead vocals on the sublime Loving You Is Easy, it seems that even Burgess's demise in a gardening accident would be unlikely to stop them.
Rating 4/5