Wall of Arms is the second studio album by the English

English people

The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...

 indie band The Maccabees

The Maccabees

The Maccabees are a indie rock band from Brighton, England. They have released two albums so far, Colour It In in 2007, with a follow-up, Wall of Arms, released on 4 May 2009...

, released on May 4, 2009. The album was preceded by the single "Love You Better" on April 27. The LP was produced by Markus Dravs, who has collaborated with Bjork

Björk

Björk Guðmundsdóttir , known as Björk , is an Icelandic singer-songwriter. Her eclectic musical style has achieved popular acknowledgement and popularity within many musical genres, such as rock, jazz, electronic dance music, classical and folk...

, Arcade Fire and Coldplay

Coldplay

Coldplay are a British alternative rock band formed in 1996 by lead vocalist Chris Martin and lead guitarist Jonny Buckland at University College London. After they formed Pectoralz, Guy Berryman joined the group as a bassist and they changed their name to Starfish. Will Champion joined as a...

 in the past.

Wall Of Arms was also worked on in various cities including Liverpool and Paris, unlike their first long-player which was recorded in "dribs and drabs" according to frontman Orlando Weeks. The video to the album's first official single, "Love You Better", was uploaded exclusively to ClashMusic.com on March 27 ahead of an April 27 release. A review on the same website reads: "The Maccabees have made sure that no listener is going to leave the experience not feeling touched in some way – by the tonal dexterity, the lyrical openness, or something that’s not so obvious until the third or fourth listen." The album leaked on April 26, 2009.

Reception

Many professional critics have said that this album, especially the track "No Kind Words", shows a much darker and evolved sound than former album Colour It In

Colour It In

Colour It In is the debut album of British indie band The Maccabees. It was released in the UK on May 14, 2007. It was released on the UK iTunes Store on April 16, 2007. The album name is the CD-only B-Side from the third single "First Love"...

:

• "the five-piece have set about traversing the opposite path to recognition, by delivering a distinctly darker second long-player. This shift in tone was showcased early on by the free download single ‘No Kind Words’; said song sits dead in the middle of this collection like the itch that you just can’t scratch, oddly pleasurable for all its irritation." - Clash
  Clash (magazine)
  Clash is a popular music and fashion magazine based in the United Kingdom. Its magazine title is published 12 times a year. It has a circulation of around 40,000....
  
  
• "Dismissed as lightweight by some, the band have used their debut as a platform for Wall Of Arms, a far more accomplished album that toys with the dreaded 'm' word: maturity. Gone are the playful, youthful lyrics about toothpaste kisses and innocuous fleeting moments with the opposite sex." - musicOMH

Due to the album production by Markus Dravs, most notably known for his techniques on Arcade Fire's album Neon Bible

Neon Bible

Neon Bible is the second album by Canadian indie rock band Arcade Fire, released in March 2007 on Merge Records. Originally announced on December 16, 2006 through the band's website, the majority of the album was recorded in a church that the band bought and renovated.Neon Bible became Arcade...

, this was also a reference point on many critical opinions:

• "If this all sounds a bit Arcade Fire, note that production credits go to Markus Dravs, who worked on Neon Bible. Thankfully, though, the sound of cynical bandwagon-jumping has been edited out of the mix. In its place are a collection of atmospheric, heartfelt pop songs that frequently fly off at unexpected angles" - The Guardian
  The Guardian
  The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
  
  

Album artwork by British artist Boo Ritson.

Track listing

All tracks by The Maccabees

The Maccabees

The Maccabees are a indie rock band from Brighton, England. They have released two albums so far, Colour It In in 2007, with a follow-up, Wall of Arms, released on 4 May 2009...

1. "Love You Better" – 3:20
2. "One Hand Holding" – 3:01
3. "Can You Give It?" – 2:54
4. "Young Lions" – 3:00
5. "Wall of Arms" – 3:04
6. "No Kind Words/Bag of Bones Part A" – 3:39
7. "Dinosaurs" – 3:15
8. "Kiss and Resolve" – 3:07
9. "William Powers" – 3:30
10. "Seventeen Hands" – 3:49
11. "Bag of Bones Part B" – 4:41

Singles

• "No Kind Words" – free download from www.themaccabees.co.uk
• "Love You Better" (April 27, 2009)
• "Can You Give It?" (July 6, 2009)

Personnel

• Orlando Weeks – vocals, guitar
• Hugo White – guitar
• Felix White – backing vocals, guitar
• Rupert Jarvis – bass
• Sam Doyle – drums