Released 15/02/10 (download).  Physical 22/02/10.


Gronland Records




Broadcast 2000 is the brainchild of the song writing multi-instrumentalist Joe Steer, and his first full length release.  Although you might not have heard of him, you almost certainly have heard his song ‘Get Up And Go’, which was featured on an E:ON advert a while back.  It’s actually a lovely little tune, driven by  ukulele and a xylophone that somehow sounds something like big ploppy raindrops (can’t believe I’ve actually just used that phrase).  Joe’s voice is spare, unassuming and doesn’t crowd out the violins and percussion. 

Understatement is the buzzword of the album.  Although there is complex instrumentation with strings and glockenspiels a’plenty, it’s all very lowkey.  Joe himself has said that he wanted to sound ‘like I recorded it in my bedroom, but this time as if I’ve got crammed a full orchestra in there.’  This being the case, he and producer Eliot James (who has worked with Bloc Party and Kaiser’s amongst others) have succeeded  brilliantly. That said, at times, as is the way with this kind of cutesy folk-pop, sometimes songs can drift buy on  a wave of their own pleasantness.  ‘Your Own Worst Enemy’ is a prime example of this- if you weren’t reading the track listing you wouldn’t even know it was there. 

Fortunately the following song, ‘That Sinking Feeling’, is one of the most accomplished here, with its poignant chorus of I wish you all the best/ I’ll give my lungs a rest/And wait until I get that sinking feeling in my chest.  The violins are gorgeous, there’s some sweet harmonies towards the end and, lets be honest here, who with half a heart doesn’t love a sweet harmony?

‘Gonna Build A Mountain’ suffers from sounding like a Christian song; not necessarily a crime in itself but indicative of its twee-ness.  I’d be very surprised if it didn’t end up on an advert too, with it’s happy-clappy chorus of ‘I’m gonna build a Mountain/ I’m gonna build it high/ I don’t know how I’m gonna do it/I only know I’m gonna try .’  You can imagine Apple executives getting into a flap about it as we speak, smug in their knowledge that they are going to make a worldwide hit out of another chirpy, middle of the road snooze-tune.

Last song ‘Changing Moves’ ensures the album ends positively, as Joe’s voice hits unforeseen high notes.    In general, ’Broadcast 2000’ is a success.  Whether or not its got enough of an edge to break out is another thing altogether, especially as we are reaching saturation point with nice folkie stuff at the moment. But if you like these sort of harmony rich, gentle tunes, you’ll more than likely think it’s a good effort.

Posted In Album Reviews, Feb 15 2010. Words - David