Umpire’s self titled EP has been on my playlist for a few years now.
It’s a solid EP revolving around their 2009 WAMI song of the year, Streamers.
So I was quite eager to hear a full length album.
On first impressions I was underwhelmed.
There are some clever songs on the album. Corner An Owl In An Alcove and The Canyon are stand outs, but they’re surrounded by unenthusiastic melodies which don’t seem to reach the promise of their EP.
On a first listen, I was missing the narrative that their EP had. The story is still there, but it takes longer to find.
The more I listen to it, the more I like it.
But it hasn’t become an album that I’ll listen to on high rotation. It’s an album I have to remind myself to listen to.
Umpire are finding their feet, and I believe they will firmly entrench themselves, as they have done in the WA music scene, in the Australian music scene.
I just don’t quite see it happening on the back of this album.
I want to like it more than I do, but I don’t.
And that makes me sad.
polka-dots & sparkles 