Nad Khan worries that Simple Minds’ 16th release may have been one too many
Caroline International
Released: 3.11.14
3/5
Kicking off with Blindfolded, which has all the euphoric traits of a band revived, Simple Minds‘ Midnight Walking follows as a perfectly amiable synth-pop belter. But, halfway through the album Blood Diamond is a sudden realisation that maybe fifteen and a half albums might have been enough. Jim Kerr’s lyrics have never been too ambiguous, but he sounds a bit like an ageing rocker with writer’s block: “I’m not a complicated guy, I like things simple as can be” he declares on closing track Spirited Away – we know Jim, we know. Any earlier momentum is further crushed by overtly cheesy vocal delay, synthesiser lines and sub-par pop arrangements, whilst Broken Glass Park is rather ironically left to pick up some of the pieces.
