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Maps - Turning The Mind

Album Reviews

The problems are thankfully forgiveable due to the overall feel of the record.

Nominated for the Mercury on his debut, Maps (aka James Chapman) established himself as an excellent purveyor of dreamy, minimal electronics but it seems now that he may well a harsh winter's answer to The Boy Least Likely To. If twee electronica is already a genre then 'Turning The Mind' may be the record to take it places, the only trouble is: it's rather patchy.

Don't get us wrong; where it's good, it's really good. For instance the title track and 'I Dream of Crystal' make a superb opening pair. The former taking an organ introduction heavy with reverb it continues from where 'We Can Create' left off, whilst the latter throws and angelic backing choir into the mix to sound like Christmas. These two pale in comparison to the album's close however; a run of tracks beginning with highlight 'Chameleon' (which actually sounds like falling in love in the snow) and taking us right through to concusion where we're left with a warm fuzzy feeling that continues long after the album has finished playing.

But like we suggested, it's not all like this. The biggest mis-step is 'Let Go Of The Fear' which with it's standard dance beat and spoken word vocals gives us the picture it's trying to homage the Pet Shop Boys. Unfortunately, however the end effect is of a budget Calvin Harris, all gloss and no substance. 'Papercuts' on the other hand compensates for a lack of ideas by sticking some really fast drums into the middle of the song in an effort to create tension. Whilst these are the worst offenders there's one or two more instances across the record that remain entirely forgettable.

The problems are thankfully forgiveable due to the overall feel of the record. Where there's a thousand albums that get easily pigeon-holed as a 'summer album', 'Turning The Mind' honestly feels like a sonic exploration and portrayal of winter. The shine of the keyboards recalling snowfall whilst the underlying static brings to mind the ever present darkness. Yet with Champan's vocals remaining ever warm and fey we get the reassuring closeness of winter bringing us together in the warm glow of, albeit artificial, light.

It's annoying to have to mark down 'Turning The Mind' for it's mis-steps. Without these songs it's still long enough and of sufficient quality to warrant being a decent album release and with CD ripping and track programming it's not hard to sort this out. Yet when listening to the album as a whole, how it's intended, it does detract. Nonetheless, this is a good album and for anyone with an interest in decent yet accessible electronica or who needs warmth and comfort over the winter it comes recommended. Rating: 7/10