Elbow has a pretty esteemed career spanning many albums and many years alike, granted mainstream success with their direction change in "The Seldom Seen Kid" on the back of their lead single "One Day Like This". With a band such as this, its worth to take a look back through their older releases as that is where their best material may lie, as proven by the wonderful compilation "dead in the boot", showing that even their b-sides have more than enough merit.
"Cast of Thousands" is one such album, building upon the promise of their debut, its a worthy successor with the benefit of hindsight and time to further refine their sound. This culminates in some of their most heartfelt tracks to date, such as the wonderfully sombre "Switching Off", discussing the idea of what your last memory would be on the brink of death. Comparatively to a device, being switched off. "I choose my final scene today," [Guy] Garvey poses as one of the tracks final lines. It's a premise that may have been approached in music preceding, but it has never seen such execution. Garvey's voice perfectly complements the angelic backing, standing as one of the album's peak moments.
Rewinding back a few tracks, the opener "Ribcage" has a similar tone but with a bit more of a bite to it. How it feels to finally let any shame built up to be finally exposed. It sets the stage for the kind of themes to expect, its climax purely epic as the choir pipes up on the central lyric: "Let the sun inside." This continues with the equally theatrical "Fallen Angel" and "Fugitive Motel", bringing sweeping instruments to the forefront as Garvey's unique presence takes hold.
It comes to a bizarre halt as "Snooks (Progress Report)" comes in with its thumping drumbeat looming ever over you throughout the tracks runtime and an urgent scream runs amuck. As the title suggests its a track of progress, catching up with friends and all is fine, but they've all moved on and the drunkard is alone under the "absurd" moon. It doesn't hurt. Merely an issue of stilted progress. It's message may be on the straight and narrow but it's unique instrumentation pulls it back, standing as one of the more memorable tracks alongside "Switching Off".
The delightfully titled "Crawling With Idiot", chronicles the everyday life of being surrounded by what the titular idiots, locking eyes with a complete stranger who seems just that little bit different. A murky track, matching its subject matter in its backing of a sleazy one night stand. It isn't serious, "I just need arms tonight." It slows further as it all blends together, almost mirroring what could be the narrator's drunken state.
This is before it builds into the glimmer of hope that is "Grace Under Pressure", a 5-minute crescendo that doesn't hold back. There's still an optimistic outlook: "We still believe in love, so fuck you." Nothing can bring you down when love is on your side. It's a delightful track, heavenly in nature as its lyrics are. It snaps your attention back into place before it even has a chance to even lose it.
"Cast of Thousands" stands as a unique flicker in Elbow's discography, lost in their back catalogue due to its fortuitous nature, but once it's cracked and you finally get into it, it becomes one of their most rewarding releases to date. Just stick with it, it may seem insignificant or directionless at first, but the rewards will be reaped.
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