The Wombats: Beautiful People Will Ruin Your Life

Side A opens with ‘Cheetah Tongue’ one of the bands most loved tracks and a live staple. It’s a rather different track to the rest of the album it has an almost psychedelic feel, and the lyrics deal with the pressures of growing up. ‘Lemon to a Knife Fight’ sees the band strip things back with an acoustic melody. However the lyrics have a darker more menacing tone, with violent and mysterious lines. It’s classic Wombats but done in a different way. ‘Turn’ is the next track and this may be my favourite track on the record, it’s super atmospheric and almost like a long lost film soundtrack. Lyrically this track is super strong to. With clever twists and turns. ‘You could give the aspirin a headache of of its life’ being one of the standout lyrics for me. ‘Black Flamingo’ is the 4th track on Side A. It reminds me a lot of the bands ‘Glitterbug’ era and it makes a change from the previous three tracks. It’s super catchy and you know exactly who you are listening to. Which is what makes The Wombats so brilliant. ‘White Eyes’ is the penultimate track on Side A another song about relationships built around a jangly guitar riff and atmospheric keyboards before a pulsating drum beat kicks in. It’s classic indie pop. ‘Lethal Combination’ ends Side A a groove based track that slows things down a little. It’s a simple indie pop song but that isn’t a bad thing at all. Catchy choruses and witty lyrics make for a great end to Side A. 
Side B opens with ‘Out of My Head’ a rather bass heavy track, that chugs along. It’s a dark affair with menacing lyrics. Sporadic synths create a haunting feel especially in the choruses. One of the most underrated tracks on the album. ‘I Only Wear Black’ is the next track on Side B a song which structurally shouldn’t make sense it begins with the chorus, and the verses follow. It makes for an interesting listen, however it’s nothing special. ‘Ice Cream’ follows another atmospheric song. With a heavier feel, crunching drums and bass guitars juxtapose the idea of a simple ice cream in the sun. ‘Dip You in Honey’ is the penultimate track. A summery festival song. It’s super catchy, it’s almost Madchester like in sound and that’s a huge compliment, another of the albums most underrated tracks. Ending the album is ‘I Don’t Know Why I Like You But I Do’ a slow burning romantic song. Where the lyrics do the talking. They allow Murphs words to breathe and take shape into meaningful verses. A perfect end to a very good album.