Belle & Sebastian - "How to Solve Our Human Problems, Pt. 2"

By this point, if you don't know Belle & Sebastian, you have some work to do.  These guys are Indie Pop legends, dishing out truly classic albums ranging from "If You're Feeling Sinister" to "Dear Catastrophe Waitress".  Now, while Belle & Sebastian are honest to God legends of Indie Pop, these later years have been iffy on the group.  There was that "Girls In Peacetime Want To Dance" album which I felt like people either really loved or really wish would go away.  Not to mention, they ended last year with a pretty poor EP with their first in their "How To Solve Our Human Problems" trilogy.  Moments like "We Were Beautiful" and "The Girl Doesn't Get It" were fine tunes, but overall the bad seemed directionless.  So here we are, with the second part of this EP trilogy.  But honestly, from the sound of these singles  Belle & Sebastian actually have SO much more direction this time around, opting to go with a refined Indie Pop sound instead of going deeper with their more Electronic tinged stuff. Let's talk about this new Belle and Sebastian EP.

This EP starts off with "Show Me The Sun", which is actually a really appropriate title.  This is easily one of the peppiest, sunniest and sweetest tunes I've heard from Belle & Sebastian in ages.  There's still almost a dance or disco flair to this, but don't fret, it actually comes off really nicely.  it's snappy and refined, just like a lot of the band's early material.  Like I said, there are some synths floating around that are pretty tasteful.  But overall, I feel like "Show Me The Sun" is everything about where Belle and Sebastian should be right about now.  There are plenty of nice throwbacks as far as the instrumentals go, and vocalist Stuart Murdoch just sounds so refreshed, especially after seemingly taking a backseat on the first installment of this EP anthology.  Overall, this is an incredibly sweet and charming intro and is already miles ahead of what they were doing late last year.  The very starry-eyed, sweet Indie Pop continues with "Same Star".  I don't mind when Stuart takes the backseat on vocal duties, especially in moments like this.  It's a very sweet tune, and I continue to feel like this is exactly where Belle and Sebastian should be at this point in their career.  There are some great dual vocals that come off nicely.  But I have to ask, exactly where is this coming from?  All of these years, Belle and Sebastian have been desperately trying to incorporate countless electronic elements.  But here all of a sudden they just sort of snap out of it and do what they do best.  Don't get me wrong, I love to hear it though because this is seriously catchy and charming.  Then we have “I’ll Be Your Pilot”, which shows Belle And Sebastian almost going for some Soft-Rock vibes with some big Jazz influences.  To be honest though, miraculously this actually works wonderfully for Belle & Sebastian.  Stuart’s performance here is totally down to earth and lovely, a lot of these tracks really do take me back to the easier times of Belle and Sebastian.  The chorus is infectious, it’s sweet, and while some of the backing vocals are a little cheesy, they end u making it work.  “I’ll Be Your Pilot” is nothing short of charming Indie Pop, and this EP so far has been incredibly pleasant.

Sadly though, Belle and Sebastian can’t seem to keep this pace up.  “Cornflakes” is up next, and right off the bat Belle and Sebastian haven’t gotten this wild experimental streak out of them.  This one is easily the artsiest and bizarre track I’ve heard from Belle and Sebastian in years.  But it’s just so incredibly not flattering for Belle and Sebastian.  Nothing here comes off truly beautiful sounding.  Just the opposite actually, it’s ridiculously choppy and quite frankly ugly.  Stuart’s performance is far from his strongest, and the backing vocals that float in are seriously annoying.  “Cornflakes’ as a whole is completely bizarre for Belle and Sebastian, and I really hope this isn’t something they try out anytime soon again.  At the very least, “A Plague On All Other Boys’ is more serene and pretty.  In a way, more than any other track here really does remind me of an earlier Belle and Sebastian tune.  But sadly, I have to say this one is on the more boring side of this EP.  It’s a very sweet ballad and all, with plenty of charming instrumentals and some decent vocals.  But I don’t feel like this adds up nearly as much as some of the earlier tunes on this EP.

Rating: 7.1/10


Give A Listen To: "Show Me The Sun", "Same Star", "I'll Be You Pilot"



Genre: Indie Pop / Indie Rock / Baroque Pop


Overall Thoughts:  After the absolute disaster that was the first part of this EP trilogy, "How To Solve Our Human Problems - Part 2" is actually a really sweet little collection of songs.  After years of pushing into the world of more Electronic material, Belle and Sebastian do what they should have done years ago, and just be themselves.  I wouldn't say this is a collection of tunes that's going to reinvent them, and this EP is far from perfect.  But this literally sounds exactly like where Belle and Sebastian should be in 2018.  It's sweet, charming, and really reminds you of what the Indie Pop legends can do.