The Streets : Computers and Blues

<img src="http://www.qromag.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/thestreetscomputers.jpg" alt="The Streets : Computers and Blues" />The Streets sign off with an album completely different to previous offerings, that at times threatens to hit the heady...
The Streets : Computers and Blues
7.5 Warner Bros
2011 

The Streets : Computers and Blues After some amazingly complex and lyrically superb albums like A Grand Don’t Come For Free and Original Pirate Material, The Streets sign off with Computers and Blues, an album completely different to previous offerings, that at times threatens to hit the heady heights of the aforementioned records, and at others reaches new lows.

The album begins with the migraine inducing "Inside Outside", which makes you want to hit the mute button; The Streets can never be accused of not producing imaginative beats, but this pushes it a little too far with incessant beeping and white noise.  "Going Through Hell" evokes memories of Brit films like Snatch and Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, but is unremarkable much like the rest of the opening to the album.  "Roof of the Car" continues in a similar vain with a decent hook but it feels forced and like poor quality album filler.  The beginning of the album makes one think that if this wasn’t the final Streets album then the first three songs would have been left back in the recording studios recycling bin.

"Puzzled by People" sends things heading in the right direction, crisp beats and Mike Skinner flowing beautifully through fabulous lyrics, "Not enough letters for the clue in my head / Lost in thought never been there before," and, "You can’t Google the solution for peoples feelings."  "Those That Don’t Know" has a more upbeat vibe with a flavour of Motown flowing through it, "Soldier" flows in a very similar way with an upbeat vibe.  The reverse love ballad of "We Can Never Be Friends" touches on a relationship that has fizzled out; the track has a slight element of "Dry Your Eyes" but without the same emotional attachment, yet nonetheless a fantastic addition to the album.

The record then explodes in classic Streets style of comedown followed by come up with "ABC", where Skinner raps about appearing to find out he had lost out on a girl via her relationship status change on Facebook, however the song brilliantly reverses itself and it is revealed that it was Skinner himself who was in a relationship with her.

Computers and Blues moves forward to the best song on the whole album with the autobiographical "Trying To Kill M.E.".  Skinner explains his personal battle with work induced Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and attempts to explain why he is moving on from the Streets.

"Without Thinking" and "Blip On The Screen" are easily forgettable but not unpleasant songs that lead onto the albums big finish, "Lock The Locks".  Lyrically brilliant as ever, Skinner twists his goodbye comparing the end of The Streets to someone packing up their office, "I’m packing up my desk / Put it into boxes / Knock out the lights / Lock the locks and leave."

For a band that have produced some of the best British urban albums of all time, The Streets leave you feeling that despite brief flashes of absolute brilliance it didn’t quite live up to the standard of Original Pirate Material and A Grand Don’t Come For Free.  With that being said, topping those smash hit albums would have been difficult for any artist, but for a group who re-wrote the book on how to produce chart topping urban music they could have offered something better than Computers and Blues, but in an increasingly pop driven world The Streets will still be sorely missed.

MP3 Stream: "Trying To Kill M.E."

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