Review: Mumford and Sons - Babel

Babel is the second album by Mumford and Sons. The album has had a fantastical rise to platinum, selling 600 000 copies in the first week of release. They have joined the likes of Adele and Taylor Swift and have outsold Justin Bieber, Green Day and No Doubt. Not to mention the album has streamed more than 8 million times on Spotify.

Mumford and Sons have done really well for themselves. However, many of these songs actually date back to Sigh No More (Mumford and Son’s debut album released in 2009) and have been road tested on their continuous tour for the past 18 months. Which is probably why many have said the album is essentially Sigh No More 2.0 - a more polished and refined version. Thanks to this though, Babel is an album packed with songs written for huge arenas and mass audience sing-a-longs. Mumford and Sons manage to make huge rock sounds by modest means, and this is what captures audiences. But not just that, they have a completely unique sound, and Babel emphasises this, taking it to mountainous heights.

If you are an old fan of Mumford, you will not be disappointed. Outbursts of prominent, stomping beats from quiet and delicate moments like a sudden burst of colour, are not a lack in the album, as can be heard in songs like ‘I Will Wait’, ‘Lover of the Light’ and ‘Hopeless Wonderer’. The feel and emotion of songs change in an instant, taking listeners with them, with each and every instrument and voice playing a vital part. There is still electricity in the driving drums, power in frontman Marcus Mumford’s voice, the fullness of the double bass and the banjo which actuates the progression of the songs. You find yourself waiting in the songs for this crescendo in the music which generally follow the quieter sections, almost as if they are playing with you. However this time when Mumford and Sons go big, they explode, letting everything out, adding in blaring horns, melodic strings, electric guitars, banging piano and echoing voices.

This being said however, the delicate and mellow tracks are here with ‘Ghosts That We Knew’, ‘Reminder’, ‘Where Are You Now’ and last but not least their amazing rendition of Simon and Garfunkel’s ‘The Boxer’- a profound and sincere cover of the song, which Mumford and Sons reformed into their own genuine feel with the help from Paul Simon and Jerry Douglas. This is really Mumford and Sons at their most fragile and the emotions in the songs are still striking. Each instrument in these songs is emphasised against the silence. County Winston’s banjo plucks softly in the background while an almost melancholic drum pounds and Ben Lovett’s underrated piano chimes. A soft guitar strums; an accordion breathes quiet notes and suddenly voices build- warm yet singing harsh words. It’s quite amazing how Mumford and Sons can be loud and firm at times, and then soft and subtle at others.

The album as a whole is more mature and intense- sound and lyrics wise- as it explores many topics ranging from love and betrayal to God and the ignorance of man. Mumford and Sons explore the role religion and love play in an everyman’s life as there are many biblical references throughout the album. Maybe a comment on how religion can complicate things and how many people blindly follow God, with lines like “And I was still but I was under your spell. I was told by Jesus all was well. So all must be well” They also speak about life and death and how delicate the line between the two are, in ‘Lover’s Eyes’ he says “Tame the ghosts in my head/ That run wild and wish me dead/ Should you shake my ash to the wind/ Lord forget all of my sins/ Or let my die where I lie”.

On more than one occasion, Marcus Mumford took the breath out of me, finding new ways to reinvent the word “fuck”. His voice, and the voices of Mumford and Sons as a whole know what they are singing about, and so they know how to portray the raw and real emotion that lie in the lyrics. When Marcus Mumford screams in frustration you can feel it in your throat and when he sings softly you can feel the delicacy and heartache. His voice is commanding and authentic. It can be heard over any instrument, portraying exactly what is felt with meaning and intent. Every word seems intimate and flows out the speakers so clearly throughout the album. You can feel every single emotion Mumford and Sons want you to.

Markus Dravs, producer of the album (and of Coldplay and Arcade Fire) definitely had his say in the album, with tracks like Hopeless Wonderer giving off a Coldplay vibe and ‘Lover of the Light’ bordering on a Dave Matthews feel. In ‘Below My Feet’ a dubstep- folk beat starts going, like nothing we've heard from Mumford and Sons, or ever, and this is just an example of what is new in Babel.

Mumford and Sons have created a genre of their own, and they have found a formula that really works and have stuck to it. They have grown, as long years of being in the music business and also years of personal experiences will do to you. And inevitably this affects their music, with amazing results.