Art Of Fighting Runaways by: JD Peterman Mon:26-Feb-07 Label: Remote Control Year: 2007 WB rating 70 out of 100

The sound of Art Of Fighting is, at best, one of slow, heart wrenching beauty – which is a rare and mysterious artistic quality as proven by Sam Mendes in his not entirely successful depiction of a flying Safeway bag as an emotive think piece in American Beauty. However, playing slow, affecting balladry is not some pancake-mix for easy success. At the tempo that Art Of Fighting frolic in, when songs fail they bomb, inducing narcolepsy and sounding like a poor man’s Sigur Ros; missing their explosive climaxes and gobbledegook lyricism.  

Art of Fighting rely on emotion to separate themselves from any such subtle disasters. Led by the voice of Ollie Browne, who has allowed the natural frailties of his voice to shine here in an uncensored and raw style, the band are built to augment and embellish a singer whose voice can sound both yearning and authoritative. They are a subtle band, a group that are able to establish and sustain a mood. At first, these subtleties can float right past you and you may find very little too hold onto, but in time the truth of these songs slowly reveal.

Runaways is a consistent album, and while old fans may rejoice in the familiarity of this sound, ultimately this approach is too safe for a band that have established their style over two previous albums. While there are slight hints of Art of Fighting moving towards sound experimentation – a trumpet in ‘Territories’, the drier sound of Ollie Brown previously reverberated voice, the more than welcome addition of dual voice or atypical vocals on ‘Mysteries’ – these delicate additions are never groundbreaking; merely nods towards a much needed growth that is never fully realised. The aforementioned innovations in sound are vitally important in saving Runaways from the fate of being a Second Storey-Wires hybrid, but they do not lift the album to the heights that are possible.

In a recent interview, Ollie Browne said that each new Art of Fighting release is a response to the last. If this is the case those that believe in the promise of the band can only lay waiting; hoping that they take the almighty plunge, adorning the magnificent mood that they create with the required detail to create a masterpiece. All of the great acts embrace change – see Wilco, Radiohead and Dylan – while their contemporary’s toil, unable to adapt; listlessly waiting for their signature sound to go stale – see Muse and Gomez. While I agree with the sentiment that change cannot be forced, ultimately evolution in the musical world is a product of Darwinism – the strongest survive and evolve to become a bigger beast.

To produce that truly special album, the sustained work that leaves the listener speechless, wordless and limp, Art Of Fighting must exaggerate this growth and reach further. On Runaways there are some moments of tender, palliative beauty – one particular example is the achingly sweet sounds of ‘Night On Night’, which drift past the listener like clouds across a mauve skyline – but these moments tend to blend into each other as a warm mood rather than a distinct journey. Hopefully, the successor to Runaways will address these troubles and Ollie can dig deep into himself to produce his masterpiece.