747s - Zampano

by Tom Mendelsohn

Music made by buskers

"747s are a band formed by buskers. Yes, this is the point at which we all know they should have given up, but they didn’t, and this stubbornness has gone on to cause all kinds of troubles"

Your reviewer agreed to listen to this album having noticed the occasional positive reference to 747s in the music press. The prospect seemed promising, and nothing ventured nothing gained. It comes as a shame then, that the record is such a towering disappointment.

747s are a band formed by buskers. Yes, this is the point at which we all know they should have given up, but they didn’t, and this stubbornness has gone on to cause all kinds of troubles. It sounds like music made by buskers in all the ways that one might expect it would; both irritatingly chirpy and lyrically obnoxious, permeated by a grim, misplaced smugness. You can guess at their chosen M.O. by casting a quick eye at their choices for touring partners - The Kooks, Yeti, The Thrills ad MOR infinitum.

This is not to say that the music is particularly bad, so much as listless and dull. Its main trouble is a terrible shallowness; there isn’t anything to the music here – no emotional power or passion, no drive and no spark. It’s spark, actually, that 'Zampano' misses most: it has no charisma of note, nor anything remarkable about the songwriting, and any good ideas which do threaten to emerge are swiftly smothered by blandness. There is the occasional snappy riff and the odd bar of creativity here and there, but mostly, 'Zampano' is characterless and uninspired.

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