Hey Ma

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Editorial reviews

Amazon.co.uk Review
In need of proof that indie mid-distance runners James are more than just that lot that made audiences "Sit Down" in the early 90s, with the occasional B-list single since? Then set yourself down in front of the title track of this, their first album in seven years and their most vital release in fifteen. "Hey Ma!" shrills Tim Booth in a disfigured falsetto, "boys in body-bags, coming home in pieces!". It's a robust piece of dissent, awkward to listen to and not exactly a short-cut to radio playlists, but the remarkable thing is how infectiously the band chime up around him, from muted flutters to spirited pulse-boosting bombast without missing a beat, acoustic guitar shredded like ticker-tape, buoyed by hopeful harmonies. It becomes a ringing pop tune, transcending its context but in turn reinforcing its message, because you can't escape it--a textbook protest song, and as such a precious rarity. This classic James line up--the one that last crafted 1993's Laid--invoke the spirit of that record and though Brain Eno doesn't produce Hey Ma they remain inspired by his methods, resulting in a fluid gushing of inspiration, numerous melodic shadings and complex weaves of sound that are never quite allowed to run away with themselves. "Bubbles" explodes in a welter of criss-crossing driven hard by a quivering trumpet fanfare, "White Boy" has the kitchen sink thrown at it and judders nearest to their earlier eccentricities, while "Of Monsters & Heroes & Men" hosts a much more subtle evolution, perfect for Booth's unwinding prose and the hymnal ends it achieves. --James Berry

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Customer reviews

review by: bazza83 date: 2008-11-27 rating:
Awesome
I had no idea 'James' were back together and recording, let alone releasing a new album, such is the amount of press this new album has received!!! Which is really undeserved.

I wasn't sure what to expect from this latest offering, its been well over a decade since their last album, could they cut it anymore? Or would they be a sad embarrasment of their former selves? Oh yee of little faith!!! 'James' were responsible for some of the best indie rock anthems of the early and mid 90's, but also wrote some great, very poignant lyrics and they have come back with an album that shows more creativity and heart in one track than some of the more "mainstream/popular" bands have in a whole album.
Standout tracks for me are "I wanna go home" and the title track "Hey ma" which is both musically uplifting, yet has the lyrics "boys in bodybags coming home in pieces."

A great album and deserving of high praise and acclaim. I urge everyone to take a listen.

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review by: date: 2008-09-08 rating:
stunning return
The world wept when james , went their separate ways , but now it rejoices with truly an awesome and moving album.
Forget the grandstanding bands like U2 and the vacuous Coldplay this is the real deal , both confronting and inspirational. The standouts are for me bubbles , hey ma and coming home but it is of monsters , heroes and men which will stay with you for a while , simply stunning.
buy it

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review by: date: 2008-06-30 rating:
Best comeback album ever
When I first heard James was reuniting, my heart was being tugged on in two directions. I would love to hear James again, but I was expecting a half hearted attempt at rekindling the magic that made James such a good band in the first place. "Hey Ma" proves my doubts wrong, and then some.

"Bubbles" begins the album with a song about new life, describing Tim Booth's joy as a father. This song is reminiscent of Laid era work - uplifting, but atmospheric. While Eno isn't here to produce this album, his presence is still felt.

But the sound quickly shifts to jam-based anthemic rock that James successfully mastered with "Gold Mother" and "Laid." "Hey Ma" might be described as an optimistic protest song. Tunefully, it's a classic. In the chorus, Tim Booth loudly proclaims "Hey ma, your boys in bodybags coming home in pieces." It's very poetic, and there's really no reading between the lines.

Elsewhere on the album, there's a theme of age and growing older. "Waterfalls" deals with materialism while the single "Whiteboy" sounds autobiographical with the wonderful line "My mom says I look like Yul Brenner/Too old for Hamlet and Too young for Lear."

Still, one of my favorite gems on this album is "Oh My Heart," a song where the singer asks to have his heart broken. It's anthemic and once again features James taking bleak moments and making them somehow uplifting. The lyrics are simple, but the breadth of feeling in this and the other offerings on this album make it a winner.

What makes Hey Ma so great though is that it feels like James of many many years ago. While jamming and experimentation did prevail on the last two albums, there seemed to be more rigid structure and thus rigid performances. Conversely, Hey Ma feels loose, fun and raw, but not without the ideas from the Eno years. It's rare that a band that has been around for 25 years can come back and sound this fresh and energetic. I have read many reviews that compare James to U2. Yet I feel U2 stopped making relevant albums (musically) sometime ago, lurking into more adult contemparary fare. James thrusts back onto the scene that could give some of the younger bands a run for their money. If you're still doubtful, check out recent live performances. As Tim Booth proclaims on "Bubbles," 'I'm Alive.' As I listen to this album, I believe it.

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review by: date: 2008-06-25 rating:
mmm ... chocolate !!!
"My works about words and sounds you can taste, violins and trumpets, chocolate cakes" sings Tim Booth halfway through this majestic, triumphant return, and so sums up both Hey Ma, and James working methods.This is mood music.Every piece here is picked from the many they improvise because it displays a mood, a feeling, a melody, hypnotic patterns that the band can't let go of and have to persevere with until Tim Booth forms the words and images that compliment them.All woven together to form songs that affect the head and the heart.It manages to be emotionally and intellectually stimulating.
I mean you can read the words and nod in agreement and think what a clever couplet/verse etc but when welded to the music it becomes unforgettable, inspiring, irresistable, troubling even.The "I'm alive" segment in the opener Bubbles for instance just makes me glad i am.If only to hear that song burst into life after its slow build up, if only to hear that line.How many other bands can make you feel that ?
Likewise the "Hey Ma the boys in bodybags, coming home in pieces" of the title track forces you to sing along in a bizarre angry/sorrowful kind of way.It is an obvious nod to the situation in Iraq/Afganistan and echoes the frustration many have over ongoing events.In track 3 you can almost touch the waterfall "cool and cold and clear" washing away the "junk" in your life, whilst the "oh my heart - come on break me two" chorus almost does exactly that.If that doesn't get you then the "i may as well try semaphore as words no longer work" opening couplet of track 6 probably will.After several listens of this cd you will end up singing along to all the songs, especially Upside with it's monumental " upside love you, downside miss you" chorus and Whiteboy with standout lines like "my mum says i look like Yul Brynner, too old for Hamlet, too young for Lear", but others will soon be burrowing deep into your mind, like Monsters with it's strange underworld tale of stray cats, feral kids, moths in the moonlight and the closing I Wanna Go Home about a drunk in a bar dying of remorse.
I've listend to a fair few new albums this year and this is still my absolute favourite.Still the one i always take with me in the car.Still the one i keep on coming back to.It is amazing, affecting, full of moments of beauty and despair.Hey Ma and James are unique, unlike anything else around.Sure is nice to have you back boys.


review by: date: 2008-05-18 rating:
Everything I hoped it would be...
I've only been a James fan since my uncle recommended Millionaires. I bought that, and quickly followed it up with the Best Of and, a couple of years later, Pleased to Meet You. I was gutted when James split, and when I heard they were releasing a new album I was delighted. I had already had a preview of what might be included on the album from a live show at in April 2007. What I remembered from that a song amazingly and unashamedly anthemic, in a way that nothing on the two albums I had really was, but in a way that many of their greatest hits - from Waltzing Along to She's A Star - are. That song was Upside, and if I had my way, it would be a massive summer hit that'll have the kids on the school buses and the crowds of the festivals singing along - it still may be.

In fact, this is the most radio-friendly James album I have, and the most immediate. On my first listen the full and delightful sound (including brass, strings, fascinating backing vocals and Tim Booth's hazy, rhythmic and at times in-your-face vocals) left me feeling very excited. But in addition to that, the songs really hit me.

Hey Ma, White Boy and Waterfall are the other anthems, but in a way which leaves them (particularly the first and third) not sounding like other James songs have before. Perhaps my favourite song on the album is Of Monsters and Heroes and Men. It builds, and builds, and builds (with a little of Out To Get You about it), and never quite cracks. It is full of words, and live would be a shivers-down-your-spine moment.

Overall, this album feels like James at their creative best. It has everything a James fan would want and more. The music is interesting and engrossing, the songs are at times anthemic and at times downbeat, and the sense is one of excitement.

I've heard the old 'dad rock' labels rolled out, as well as criticisms for James writing songs about being old. But they are older - to write about what they wrote about 20 years ago would be dishonest. Take James for what they are - a heroic band in their middle age who make the sort of music you can fall in love with. This album is full of it.

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