2nd Listen.
I hit skip halfway through Slow Jam, then gave up halfway through Farmer's Market.
I might shuffle the track listing in a bit, later, see if I can find something that my head doesn't get bored with.

First play of the "Real" album now. Not just the leak. Sounds so so much better, and it's a grower album indeed, but cohesion is not something i would put in a review. Sounds a bit like a best of. 

Spike Island. Well, that was the obvious single, and the song that sounds most like "Old" Pulp circa 95. 8/10

Tina. Tina really does sound like an outtake from The Last Shadow Puppets 1st album, with the outro straight out of Separations era, it's uncanny. Great track, like a Bond Theme in the Separations era with Alex Turner circling around somewhere.  9/10 

Grown Ups. I mean, what can i say, it's just perfect, a classic nostalgia bittersweet track from Jarvis, sounds like his second solo album, to me it was a good choice to not include it on TIH, it would have sounded out of place, but it'd still be interested to hear what they had at the time. 10/10

Slow Jam. Well, the slap bass i need to get used to it, but it's Pulp and they are gonna get away with it. the most "Jarv Is" song on there. And it was basically a Jarv Is track right ? Another stellar production from James Ford. He kinda makes the song. 7/10. Maybe it did not fit on this record though, especially with what's to follow. I would have swapped it for a new version of After You. 

Farmers Market. This is the kinda magic song from Jarvis where you first go "hmmm, ok", then after a few listens, it clicks, and it's amazing. Kinda sounds like his solo collab with Chilly Gonzalez, and of course, i love it. How does he do that ? I dont know. Another great take on society, but with a twist. He's now old and go to where old people go. and also hipsters. 8/10 

My Sex. Well, the professional part 2 isn't it ? Maybe a bit too close, the professional also have a better production, less mainstream. it's also reminiscent of a Serge Gainsbourg song, but i can't really find which one now. Another one that maybe did not fit on the record. 6/10 

Got to Have Love. Well well well ! The song i was probably most anticipating and that since the demos leaked i dont know how many gazillion years ago. Kinda put down by the fact that the chorus is lifted from another song. So to me it shouldn't be a single. but as an album track, yes ! I guess it was either that or After You.

It's also a bit muffled compared to the rest of the record, it does not have the same power, dynamics are very tired. Weird. Is it from another session ?  Maybe the CD version will be better and its just the streaming version of the single put on the album. Let me know guys i'm a bit worried !  7/10. 

Background Noise. I was really expecting something different, maybe a bit more raw, something more like Jarvis FC album, where the voice would be on the verge of breaking and the instrument as well. But it did not, it stayed very polite. Like the little brother of I Never Said I Was Deep and Bad Cover Version - 8/10 

Partial Eclipse. This is the kinda song that needs time to click. And it did. Great "slow" song. 8/10 

Hymn of the North. My favorite from the live songs debuted a few years ago. Like Background Noise, they chose the "not overblown" route. Why ? This song needed to go directly in the wall, like This Is Hardcore, especially the weird middle 8. But it's still a great take. Crystal clear vocals, subtle strings... a gem. 8/10 

A Sunset. If no one sues for that, then they are lucky  I'd like to Teach the World to sing mixed with that Leonard Cohen song, and even Born to Cry thrown in. Nice production though since i did not really rate the live version. The production makes the song. 6/10 

Open Strings. A really good bsides that deserved a spot on the album. Somewhere. 7/10 

Overall feeling : It's a... weird tracklisting. I'm gonna swap a few and maybe ditch My Sex, which sounds too much like a Gainsbourg/Professionnal Rip off. and swap it with Open Strings which is better in my opinion. I dont know. Overall rating 8/10. There is more to come, there needs to be, this was just a teaser. A good return. But my guess is they have more and bigger in their sleeves. See you in 2027 for a new record ? Yes please... 

 

There was also room for the Cuckoo song on there somewhere ! We sure all the songs are all from the same sessions ? I have my doubt. Feels like some were recorded before. 

-- Edited by andy on Friday 6th of June 2025 01:31:00 PM

WARNING! Long post incoming but if you don't know me by now, you will never ever...

***

So I replicated the debut WLL listening experience from all those years ago. Tucked-in in bed late at night as the album was released. Countdown to midnight, Separation volume control. Love Is Blind? Not how Jarvis seems to feel these days...

I had a better pair of headphones than October 2001 and was ready to go.

First impressions are important, especially when it comes to the "cheap potency" of pop music. We've all dismissed a song/artist quickly from hearing just one snatch of a chorus, even more-so these days with the availability of all the musics in the worlds a click or swipe away.

So with the caveat that in general terms, songs/albums grow on you the more you listen to them, PLUS feeling that Pulp are "our kids" and wanting them to fulfil their potential as perennially worried parents focusing on the troubling bits - it must be the grown-ups in us; here are initial thoughts that may be subject to change...


SPIKE ISLAND (7.5/10): I agree a lot with what Lipglossed said about this. The production and groove make the song and everything else sits around it. The verse lyrics are brilliant, initially I thought JC was cramming extra syllables in but they do work. A repetition, twice, of an elongated "feeeeeeeling" did grate a little for a while (maybe chuck in a rhyme like "revealing"?) but I give him a pass given feel-ing is the theme of the record really. I still think that as a comeback/trailer for a new period, this is not in the same league as Common People (obvs), Help The Aged/This Is Hardcore or even Must I Evolve. It's like a solid second single from an album. It just lacks full take-off for me - no interesting middle-eight, the chorus vocal falls shy of its anthemic leanings and gets very close to Jarvis-strain which I was worried would put casual folk off. But I'm so glad that it's found a large audience. Which is down to the power of the arrangement and groove mainly, I think.


TINA (7.5/10): I think I'm suffering from overdosing on the BBC live version of this last weekend. Must have caned it twenty times or so. This is so playful, true to their John Barry Bond-theme roots and is just tremendous fun. I feel like a Pulp song hasn't galloped like this since Rattlesnake. Initial thoughts on the album version are that Jarvis' vocals aren't pushed to the front enough (which I found to be the case with a lot of the album on first listen). Couldn't resist a second spin before sleep and it sounded better and closer to its potential shown live. What stops it from being top-notch is maybe the lack of a consistent chorus anchor in the lyrics and I can see why the whole thing could be dismissed as a 60's pastiche - vaguely spaghetti-western inspired pop song with clichéd house-band lounge strings. ("But we no better, don't we?"). Also, when he mentioned "lipstick marks on my coffee cup", I thought "No! Don't make me think of Take That!" I've never heard such a delineation from recycling someone else's line to following it up with a trademark belter of your own - "Screwing in a charity shop on top of black binbags" indeed !

At first I thought Tina was a composite character like in Wickerman or You Are The One but in one of the recent interviews, Jarvis mentioned that he would see her sporadically for years afterwards so maybe not...


GROWN UPS (7/10): The only song from the album that we hadn't heard at all in any form ahead of the album release. Quite a bit going on here and I think it will grow on me but after one listen I did feel a bit underwhelmed. Mark finally gets centre stage with guitar from the start but it's a fairly standard thick one string-riff. I think it could be overlaid with other counterpoint melodies/lead-guitar to make it more interesting. I really like the opening lyrics and I had clocked the recycling of The Night They Let Me Out Of The Home from early reviews quoting some of the lines. I get the Dexys stomp references (whom I love), I also hear a bit of Madness in the frenzied build. But the chorus to me is a little forced, trying too hard to be memorable. It is catchy but it's a bit obvious. I can kind of see why it was buried in January 1997 to be honest. Mark's least-favourite song on the album, interestingly. Then again, he hated all the good bits of Hardcore and loves the rest! The spoken section does have a strong quality and JC's vocals & wordplay sound great but overall I'm yet to be totally convinced. Come back to me on this...


SLOW JAM (8/10): I wanged-on about the live Jarv Is...version of this for a long time, I seem to be one of the few who it left a mark on! Ironically, I missed the Camden November 2021 Jarv Is... gig where this was played (only ever performed elsewhere on that specific tour before now) due to Covid. But once I saw a Youtube upload of a performance from Bristol that month, the song just stuck with me. I was going through a bad time and the pain in the song must have chimed. I even told Jarvis in Sep '23 at Foyles bookshop that it was "****ing brilliant" and not to let it go unrecorded!
Cut to the last week and eagerly awaiting to hear how it turned out, and the 6 Music session which is true to this album version. The verses have been made less to serve the song as was and more to put the titular "slow jam" to the forefront. Hence slap-bass and skittish rhythm which is... a bold choice. However the vocal melody is also not as tight as the Jarv Is... version and I was beginning to feel crest-fallen. BUT then the chorus hit and wow... it's been beefed-up with gorgeous strings, keys and that end bass-piano note that anchors the sadness in the lyrics. The three chorus/climaxes are possibly my favourite individual moments on the album and I think I'll get used to the arrangement on the rest of it. And I can stop listening to Jarv Is... playing it in Bristol in 2021...


FARMERS MARKET (7.5/10): Ballads in general are often tunes to be admired rather than be excited about and it's only special ones (see Hymn) that have me reaching for the repeat button. So it is a little with this and Partial Eclipse later on. Pleasant strings and vocal intro, neat little chorus. The bridge/post-chorus kind of makes/saves the song for me - the bit about "trying dreams on for size". The last part is beautiful, no doubt, and did make me shed a tear on the BBC performance. I'm glad it's not drawn-out too much as it appeared to be live in the US debut renditions. I still need to be in the proper mood to really want to hear this, or, ideally, in love, like...


MY SEX (8.5): YES, thank you - highpoint of the album to this point. Delivers on the live potential. Loving Mark's guitar sound - he's so good at that moody, muscular but not over-stated tone. A reminder of his signature playing coming to the fore on the Hardcore material post-Russell. There have been comparisons with The Professional from that era too and you can hear it in the tone and vocal delivery but I think this is a level above. Just really sharp observations, some outrageous word-play ("hand-reared", "a lover stiff"). The only thing, on my maiden listen, that lets it down are those female BVs. I don't know what they're saying and the high-pitch is a little jarring. The section at the end... are they reciting random numbers? I don't know if it's a nod to AI/"automated" sexuality but the track could do without them. Might grow on me. Overall, the track is an absolute triumph though.


GOT TO HAVE LOVE (7.5/10): Years ago, I would have been gutted to discover that a Pulp/Jarvis song was based around a sample from something else. (There's an embarrassing post on this forum from back in 2009 of my despair at finding out You're In My Eyes/Discosong was cribbed from someone else!) But this time round? Nah, it's fine. They've built a mini-epic around those 70s female backing-vocals and it all works really well.

I'm still unsure about the extended spoken-word section. I get that it's probably the key part, not just to this song but of the entire album, and Jarvis hilariously reigns-in the triteness by calling himself a ponce. And it worked to good effect live at the BBC. I also smile at the Sheffield coming out in Jarv on the line "Do you even know how to spell i' " as his voice really sounds like his 31 year-old self in Catcliffe Shakedown ("I dunno, label's come off") Again, though, as with Spike, I can't quite shake the feeling that a memorable sung middle-eight section would elevate this more. Also a note on Mark and Nick's contributions here. At times the drums on this record are under-used or even missing (ironically they had both a Banks and a Betts ready to bash-out whatever was needed in the studio!). Here though, you can't help but smile at Nick being given the chance to bash the fcuk out of those cymbals going into the last chorus while Mark's lead-lines are not the most subtle but they are effective. It could be Emma playing too, I think the Elysians gave her a nod when the single was released.


BACKGROUND NOISE (8/10): Oh Pulp, you give so much and then you taketh... for me this is clearly the strongest pop chorus on this album and I'm so glad that my whole "Yeah but I liked the live version better" shtick is rendered redundant here. I haven't heard Jarvis sound so good in a soaring chorus since... I'm not sure when... but everything just works here. The 60s heavy beat on the one by Nick, before he fully lets loose in that chorus, Mark's keening guitar, the strings getting out of the way of Jarvis crooning but still offering a lovely harmony (or is counter-melody?).

The only slight criticism is that it feels like the verses have been slowed-down a little. That first live version from Mexico all those months ago when we really thought that something must be happening, was so exciting but it felt like the song was a bit short and missing a middle section. Mark told Giles Acrylic in that great interview he did for his book that the band had gone through various iterations of this song. When I clocked that the track-time was about half a minute longer than live, I felt confident that a missing section had since been found.

So it is a little disappointing that they second-guessed themselves and reverted to the original version but the chorus is so good and totally deserving of the doubling-up (and second time round there is variation in the arrangement in fairness) that I forgive them. I hope Pulp do release another single - not that singles matter anymore, but I want to see the band in a fun video and I want radio to fall in love with this song. I think taste-makers would find this an easier sell than the two singles to date. Three and a half minutes and the choruses are instant ear-candy.


PARTIAL ECLIPSE (7.5/10): I kind of feel similar to Farmers Market that I do about this one. Violin and vocals straight in, pleasant and short chorus, clever lyrics. Neither song plods which I feared they would, the mid-pace suits the song and it doesn't drag. The vocals probably help with that as they are strong and witty. There are strong similarities to the end of the chorus and Bowie's Space Oddity ("And there's nothing I can do"). Also, is anyone hearing Head Over Heel by Tears For Fears in the verse vocal melody?!

I'm not quite sure I get the last part about the homeless fella (an eclipse, just like a sunset, is free for everyone but then reality beckons?) but it's a welcome section in the song. The long celestial outro is presumably there to serve the lyrical theme. I like this song but if the album was subject to brutal edits, I think one of this and Farmers Market could possibly go.


THE HYMN OF THE NORTH (9/10): A wonderful, beautiful song that I've had in my head since hearing it at Sheff two years ago. I held my breath that they would do it justice in the studio but it sounds like they have. Some little vocal-melody revisions here and there that actually improve the song and the strings get their full day in the sun. But I was so happy to hear Nick crash in on the drums for the final section. In an album that might be slightly ballad-heavy, this is how to do it, going all-out. Strong theme, multiple vocal hooks, challenging but satisfying (and short) mid-section with the abrasive strings which is inspired really as it helps the song from venturing too close to cloying. If they perform this at the Mercury Prize in October and the judges decide the winner after all the artists have each played a song, this will win Pulp their second award. Outstanding!


A SUNSET (8/10):

It clearly is a "me" problem where I get so used to an early live iteration that when the recorded version is missing quirks or adding in over-production on other elements, it can be hard to readjust. But this seems to be the MO that JC is comfortable with - try-out new material live, gain confidence, record it in the studio with a smattering of other new songs not performed live.

I'm so relieved that the record generally enhances what we've heard before and no more so than this song. I had kind of dismissed it as Hawley-troubadour fodder of the type he could write in his sleep but the way the arrangement here has filled-in all the gaps is great and the sing-along nature of the chorus works really well. As might have been noted by now, I'm a sucker for a winning middle-eight and I'm glad the album ends on two of them (see Hymn before). The "like to teach the world to sing" part slots-in really well and the song ends a little abruptly which is a bit of a surprise as Jarvis is prone to the long fade-out.


*

So, overall, the album feels like a winner. A more than solid 8/10,four stars, I can only see that increasing after 61 plays (why 61? It could just as easily be 610...niche reference for you there... ). It's an easier record to get on with than Hardcore and We Love Life were.

Ford, the Elysians and the Jarv Is... crew have clearly stamped their mark on this. Nick, Candida and Mark dont feel as prominent as on other records but they are undoubtedly present and I'm relieved about that because this still feels more like Pulp than any record Jarvis has done since 2001.

There are strong melodies on practically every song and the production is sumptuous throughout. For these reasons, the absence of one or two "rockers" or more up-tempo songs are probably not felt as much as they could have been. If I was to be harsh, maybe Jarvis could have had a go at finishing the "angry, loud" song that was left as an instrumental and that could have displaced a slower song. But it may have disturbed the theme of the album too much. This is Pulp grown-up, very much in late mid-life. Mark Webber promised us "mature, frothy pop" and thats what we've gratefully received. I hope the love that they are being shown at the moment will convince them that there is more gas left in the tank. An angry (but catchy) record might be yet in them and between both, the Pulp story will have a far more satisfying ending than the fizzling-out of We Love Life and Miner's Strike.

-- Edited by Eamonn on Friday 6th of June 2025 12:35:02 PM

'Grown Ups' reminded me of Souvlaki Space Station by Slowdive. Just that guitar bit at the start. 'Tina' is very Go Betweens. 'My Sex' reminds me a bit of The Professional in its content. Maybe its older more wrinkly uncle. The Hymn of the North - that swell when it kicks in with the orchestra - thats probably my fav bit so far out of many.

Yall are very eloquent. Im over here like album good. Songs good. But really I agree with the sentiment that theres not a bad song on the whole album. Background noise is, upon first listen, my favorite, but theres not one song I dislike.

Noticed there is no "Please don't read the words while listening to the recordings" on the lyrics sheet. Is this the first time?

Wish Id asked JC to write to not to listen to the music when reading the words when I got a copy of his Lyrics signed. I bottled it because I thought that was a lot to write and the queue was long.

Hey, weve lived with the Pulp canon for so very long. Its fascinating feeling my mental furniture move around to accommodate the new songs, the links between them and what they mean for my image of this band.

Glory days! At this moment the are Pulp songs we are all actually deciding if we like or not, and learning the words! Its weiiiiird!

-- Edited by superchob on Friday 6th of June 2025 02:55:18 PM

Heres my quick take-

Musically this is a very grown up album, its quite sophisticated- there are elements from different eras of Pulp that creep through, which make me giddy. A couple of songs sound like Jarvis solo work and theres the odd track where I can hear other Pulp/ Jarvis songs eg- I can hear Big Julie in Farmers Market- but maybe thats just me.. Anyway- I think the album is great- It took me a few plays to digest it properly and theres some excellent stand out tracks- the singles obviously, Grown Ups, Slow Jam and My Sex are top notch and I prefer the studio version if the Hymn of the North by a long shot- I wasnt keen on this when I first heard it, but I'm really into this version.. also Background Noise, what an absolute gem! Heartbreakingly brilliant, one of my favourites on the album.

Unfortunately I just cant get into Tina! Theres a lot of positive comments on this track, so im just going to have to see how I feel as time goes on.

In an alternate universe, where Pulp never released After You, I think a 2025 Pulp studio version of this track would have sat nicely on the album

But overall, over the moon with it, its a very nice album.

Welcome back

andy wrote:

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Pye wrote:

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Heres my quick take-

Musically this is a very grown up album, its quite sophisticated- there are elements from different eras of Pulp that creep through, which make me giddy. A couple of songs sound like Jarvis solo work and theres the odd track where I can hear other Pulp/ Jarvis songs eg- I can hear Big Julie in Farmers Market- but maybe thats just me.. Anyway- I think the album is great- It took me a few plays to digest it properly and theres some excellent stand out tracks- the singles obviously, Grown Ups, Slow Jam and My Sex are top notch and I prefer the studio version if the Hymn of the North by a long shot- I wasnt keen on this when I first heard it, but I'm really into this version.. also Background Noise, what an absolute gem! Heartbreakingly brilliant, one of my favourites on the album.

Unfortunately I just cant get into Tina! Theres a lot of positive comments on this track, so im just going to have to see how I feel as time goes on.

In an alternate universe, where Pulp never released After You, I think a 2025 Pulp studio version of this track would have sat nicely on the album

But overall, over the moon with it, its a very nice album.

Welcome back

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I was really not into Tina when i first heard it on the BBC gig. Like what the f is that s... Now i love it ! Its because the melody is really, really weird. 

As for After You, just stick it on the tracklisting, it fits quite well like that. But i would have loved to hear a James Ford version. Maybe they did and we'll get an extra later ?  I doubt they only recorded 12 songs. 

-- Edited by andy on Friday 6th of June 2025 05:27:31 PM

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Maybe one day it will hit me Ill keep listening! 

Andy, they did only record 12 songs sadly! And one instrumental that Jarvis couldn't think of words for.

I kind of agree that After You would have made a good addition to the record.

I had a tsunami of work these last few days and didn't have space to give this the attention it demands. Sitting down now to listen for the first time. No comments until after third or fourth listen.