Album Reviews

Originally released in 2012, Deep Elm took it upon themselves to re-release the third album by post-rockers Athletics. “Who You Are Is Not Enough” is a concept album about finding oneself and was written as one song that is divided into five parts. The re-release also features versions of the songs without vocals ‘in order to give the listener an option to create his or her own experience (…) without any pre-conceived ideas’, according to label owner John Szuch.

There is a lot to be said for this album and even though I prefer the version with the vocals more, the songs are still left standing without them. That’s because Athletics are pretty friggin’ great at writing tunes that gently trickle along with beautiful and warm guitar lines before building up to a climax. Even when they slow things down to just piano and vocals in “V”, they pull it off effortlessly and one the last melancholy-inducing note rings out, it just leaves you wanting more.