Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10
You can take all the time you want as you allow the thoughts of life to guide you in the direction you believe you should be taking, however, sometimes you have to grasp the initiative and the incentive and really learn patience, to master the ideal situation presented to you and pass the lesson on, to Hurry Up And Wait is not a double standard, it is an essential way of living.
We listen to our gut reaction, we make time for the mind and the sense of the immediate and the pleasure that we seek, but to the soul, that beat behind the heart, we often neglect, telling it that if we listen to its voice then we will miss out on an experience, we will forgo the chance to love in the extreme and then repent at our leisure. However, if we take our time to see the heartache out, to relish a truth of glad tidings, then surely the knowledge we glean becomes invaluable, a skill to which no one can remove from our C.V.
For the band Soul Asylum, a resounding welcome will surely ring in their ears for their latest studio recording, Hurry Up And Wait, for it oozes patience, it understands the presence of mind that it takes to savour some time out and find what the next statement of intent will be. You can rush the day any way you want but you then misplace the point, the moment in which the best you can be becomes a benchmark in which you surpass every time.
It is to the benchmark breached with musical endeavour that make up this new release, the indelible stamp of fortune braved that makes up tracks such as Got It Pretty Good, Social Butterfly, Landmines, Freezer Burn, Silent Treatment and Make Her Laugh, such intriguing and gratifyingly rewarding songs to indulge in. The presence of the mind to find that the soul does nothing but speak the truth is to be found throughout the album and as each moment of rock memory finds a place to bypass the heart and stimulate the pleasure centres of the mind from behind the beat, it is to the listener that finds they can leave the refuge of their pain and take up arms to protect the sanctuary the music provides for others.
Four years out of the limelight, four years and they come blistering back to provide a different beat, Hurry Up And Wait, for the world does not for those who languish.
Ian D. Hall