Vessels – The Great Distraction

Delving deeper into electronica, Vessels' fourth studio album could well be their best album to date

Album Review by Claire Francis | 25 Sep 2017
Album title: The Great Distraction
Artist: Vessels
Label: Different Recordings
Release date: 29 Sep

What do you do when you've pushed the prog-rock envelope as far as it extends? In the case of Leeds five-piece Vessels, you call in a host of high-profile collaborators, delve even deeper into electronica territory, and wind up with what could well be your best album to date.

The Great Distraction, Vessels' fourth studio album, features guest vocals on four of its ten tracks. These come courtesy of John Grant, Django Django's Vincent Neff, Katie Harkin of Sleater-Kinney and Sky Larkin, and most illustrious of all, from The Flaming Lips' Wayne Coyne. 

The Coyne collab, Deflect the Light, is a grand statement from both parties. Auto-tuned as high as the heavens, Coyne's vocals wring out emotion to the point of bathos, with lyrics like 'There inside a cobweb / A struggling butterfly is trying to be free' laying on the cosmic introspection. With a pattern of shimmering, clinking synths strung together like a glittering chandelier, the track sees Vessels unfurl their creative petals, much like The Flaming Lips' own sonic evolution.

As well as a star-studded list of collaborators, The Great Distraction boasts a fistful of dancefloor-ready bangers. Mobilise is an eight-minute-plus stormer of a tune with a rollercoaster's worth of thrilling peaks and troughs. Hypnotic moments such as Radiart, with its hushed vocals, and the stealthy low-end wobble of Position would also be right at home blaring from a club soundsystem. If Vessels ever decide to cast aside the guitars and prog-rock stylings, a career in house and techno production would surely beckon.

Listen to: Mobilise, Deflect the Light

http://vesselsband.com/