Bombay Bicycle Club - A Different Kind Of Fix

When 'Shuffle' was released a single, some fans were confused as to where the Bombay Bicycle Club they knew and loved had gone. Waking up the bleary eyed with a wonky piano riff, droning undertones and less formulaic production, 'Shuffle' is the point at which you can clearly see the influence that Animal Collective producer Ben Allen has had on Bombay Bicycle Club's third studio album A Different Kind Of Fix. Dissimilar to I Had The Blues... and Flaws, A Different Kind Of Fix doesn't contain songs like the instant hits that have made them so renowned through audiences young and old. For the North London based band, this is their most hotly anticipated album since Flaws charted at #2 in the UK charts which gained them plenty new fans who perhaps thought Bombay had found their niche and would stay with the acoustic sound.


Featuring on the Eclipse soundtrack, opener 'How Can You Swallow So Much Sleep' has become a fan favourite despite the fact that I doubt many of their fans actually saw the third installment of the demeaning Twilight series. The album goes from strength to strength as 'Bad Timing' is akin to the hits of 'I Had The Blues...' but sounding a lot more mature and with epic guitars of Interpol proportions. This is new territory for the band as they have released two very consistent and dare I say it, safe albums. There isn't a song on A Different Kind Of Fix that sounds similar to the next and Jack Steadman even treads on Thom Yorke's shoes in 'Still', where his falsetto bears a canny resemblance to the Radiohead frontman. 


New addition to both live shows and recording, Lucy Rose provides a soothing, female equivalent vocal to Jack Steadman's, producing perfect harmonious points on the album, most notably on 'Lights Out, Words Gone'. It feels as if they have really pushed the boundaries of their sound while still staying very true to themselves. Although A Different Kind Of Fix doesn't possess the instant charisma of I Had The Blues or the fairytale charm of Flaws, the record grows with every listen, it may not be that festival friendly but it's impossible to stop yourself singing along. Bombay Bicycle Club are releasing albums at breakneck speed and show no signs of slowing down for anyone. 


8/10
By Aurora Mitchell