Review: Death of the Party marks the end of the completely carefree Magic Gang

: by Joe Sharratt; in Reviews; on 07 September 2020

Brighton quartet The Magic Gang won swathes of music fans over with their self-titled debut album that was about as feel-good a record as the indie scene produces. Packed with harmonious sunshine-tinged carefree tunes, it was a wonderful record and one that marked the band out as ones to watch.

Their second album, Death Of The Party, doesn’t quite signify the death of that party, but it does mark a significant change in the band’s sound. Gone is the wall-to-wall optimism, and in its place is a more rounded collection of songs, with more intricate songwriting and a wider creative output on show.

All that said, Think is an absolutely joyous opener, a bouncy indie-pop classic complete with horns and harmonies, that takes the formula of their debut and turns everything up several notches. Make A Sound layers luscious strings and a cute chord progression while Just A Minute thunders along with some pulsating verses and a soaring chorus.

The album’s title track is a stripped-back, slow-tempo retelling of New Year’s Eve 2018, written by frontman Kristian Smith. Rather charmingly, co-frontman Jack Kaye wrote Make A Sound about the very same night, without either band member being aware of the other’s intentions. It’s the sort of charming quirk that fits The Magic Gang perfectly. Record execs would probably call it “on brand”.

What Have You Got To Lose and Take Back The Track are the heart of the album, the first mixes some smart lyrics and builds from a gentle start into a skidding guitar-powered chorus, while the latter fuses a funk-esque rhythm and some whole-band harmonies to fantastic effect.

The happy-go-lucky attitude of their debut is still alive and well, but The Magic Gang have taken their songwriting to new places with Death Of The Party.

Watch the official video for Think here.

Death Of The Party track list:

1. Intro

2. Think

3. Make A Sound

4. Just A Minute

5. What Have You Got To Lose

6. Death Of The Party

7. Take Back The Track

8. I Am Sunshine

9. Gonna Bounce Back

10. Fail Better