Victory for the Comic Muse

The Divine Comedy release their latest album this week. I have it sitting beside me on my desk but am waiting for the OK to open it from my wife (who is the one who ordered it, so its only fair she gets the say)

What I've heard of it is promising. I'm a long time fan of the band/collective/Neil Hannon and he is one of those guys who you just will to keep being good. Not all the Divine Comedy albums have been brilliant but they always have a redeeming wit and intelligence that shines through. The last effort, Absent Friends, was half a brilliant album and had loads of great song writing contained within it but some of it was unfortunately hidden behind over complicated and ambitious musical arrangements. I'm not against ambition in music and seeking to do something new but sometimes simplicity is the best way to go.

I don't know whether "simple" could apply to any of the DC albums but this one seems to return to a more tightly contained musical canvas to paint the songs on and it benefits from it.

The video for the latest single, "Diva Lady", shows Neil's sense of humour and you can watch it below, courtesy of You Tube