Who wants some indie bangers? Is anyone here craving a few songs to sing along to at a festival? Perhaps some highly energetic guitar melodies to dance around in your skinny jeans? Alright, look no further; as always, Miles Kane has you covered.
One Man Band comes just over a year from his last album, the critically acclaimed (at least by those who know a good tune when we hear it) Change The Show. The previous album was Miles venturing out of his trademark solo Indie sound and adopting something more eccentric. Perhaps more befitting of his work with The Last Shadow Puppets. The record brought together an amalgamation of jazz, soul and funk influences. However, he’s come back to his roots on One Man Band.
Miles has said, “Sometimes you have to go backwards to go forwards, and this album helped me rediscover why I picked up a guitar in the first place. This album is like a brand-new yet somehow familiar leather jacket. A comforting melting pot of all the music that has inspired and continues to inspire me every day.”
The album kicks off with ‘Troubled Son’. Feeling tailormade for the festival stages, it’s an energetic start to the album, destined to be accompanied by swarms of adoring fans jumping along to its rhythm in an open field somewhere in the near future. It’s like something we would have heard back on his earlier works, such as The Colour of the Trap and Don’t Forget Who You Are. Miles said about the song, “It’s about the struggle we all have in life. – Sometimes, we have our shit together, and sometimes we don’t. This is me acknowledging my faults and my fears and showing the journey I’m taking as I try to figure it all out.”
Up next is the attitude-filled ‘The Best Is Yet To Come’. Again it’s filled with the same festival-style buzz we found on ‘Troubled Son’ but this time edgier. It has a real punch to it, with heavier drums and a thickly distorted bass providing a formidable backbone. The bass is so solid here that it sits isolated quite a lot, allowing the guitar to fall back and come crashing in to deliver the chorus with greater force when required.
The title track ‘One Man Band’ again follows the trend set before it, not taking a rest, the guitar stays firmly in hand, and the choruses remain as commanding and infectious as ever – something we have expected from Miles over the years. Here we see his largely unrivalled talent in creating a uniquely infectious melody.
A real highlight on the album comes from the single, ‘Baggio’. It’s a fun-filled song. It holds the same energy the others set before, however, this time with a slice of nostalgia attached. It’s a lively tune, equally as catchy as a few that came before, that draws direct inspiration from his childhood hero, Roberto Baggio.
Speaking about the song, Miles has said, “I was eight years old when I first saw Baggio on TV; it was during the 1994 World Cup. It was the first time I’d seen a man look so different and unique. Seeing Baggio led me to be obsessed with that Italian football team for many years later. They made me want to grow my hair, and I think that was the start of getting me obsessed with clothes, fashion and all things Italian. It was the start of me wanting to grow into who I am today”. The song develops from something quite clean-cut and simple, setting up the story before shaping into a more complex piece, reminiscent of the early works by the Last Shadow Puppets.
For anyone looking for a slice of wholesomeness to brighten the day, typing in ‘Searching for Baggio’ on YouTube will bring you to a short film made to accompany the song, whereby Miles got to meet his hero in Milan. It’s a nice little cherry on top of this song that makes it feel more authentic – knowing the feelings he’s sharing in the lyrics and his fascination for the player and all things Italian aren’t just for show but a genuine part of his life. Also, learning that the man himself, Baggio likes the song is perhaps the ultimate stamp of approval.
One of the best things about Miles Kane for his fan base is he remains somewhat underrated when he ventures into his solo career. This seems to keep him genuine, allowing his finger to stay on the pulse of his fans. He injects the same energy into his shows at Glastonbury as he does to the sold-out music halls we can still manage to catch him in when he’s not selling out arenas. He still allows his fans to meet him and watch him live in bookstores, HMVs and town halls – which is a rarity nowadays. This album feels like an album for them. It sounds like he’s returned to what made his fans fall in love with him to give them more of that high-energy indie rock they all adore.
Purposefully, he has taken a step back to give us an album packed with joyous guitar melodies and sing-your-heart-out choruses. It’s fun, energetic and genuinely infectious. Current fans will love it, and the casual festival goer will have one hell of a day when these get pelted out on a main stage.
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