On September 9, 2016, British indie pop band Bastille, famous for their single “Pompeii,” released their second official studio album, “Wild World.”
After the immense success of their debut album “Bad Blood,” Bastille had to bring it back with another hard hitting album, which the band succeeds at, with some sadly forgettable songs in the middle.
The album starts off with its main lead single, “Good Grief,” which gives a good mix of both an upbeat tune along with melancholy lyrics about missing someone you once loved.
Throughout the album, there’s a lot of gems, but also some that seem to fade it, but are made up for by hits like “Glory,” a song about true friendship and having a connection with those you love, and “Way Beyond,” a song about not caring about the horrible things in the world, especially on the news.
Sadly, these great songs are also shadowed by some forgettable songs (Power) and some songs that are strange both in tone and in meaning. (Oil on Water)
Alongside the album, the band has also been doing a project that goes alongside the album, known as “Wild World Communications. (WWCOMMS)” WWCOMMS is a parody of the news and the corruption that goes along with it, and is featured often in the band’s music videos for the album.
“We’ve brought all of the ideas that we explore across the album in line with the extra layer of WWCOMMS stuff that we’ve been using across everything from social media to music videos to add an extra layer to the world that is the album,” lead singer Dan Smith told New Musical Express (NME). “We’ve made a show that, from the moment you walk into the room till the moment you leave, is hosted by the politician/newsreader from our ‘Fake It’ video. He’s like a spokesman for WWCOMMS, we see him on and off the air, and he introduces the support bands and us. We just wanted to do something different and unsettling, but obviously we also want it to be a fun experience.”
All-in-all, Bastille’s second album gives a great mix of both deep, heartfelt messages with an electronic vibe, giving music both to cry to and to dance to. My final score for the album would be an 8/10.
