Young Modern; Song 2: Straight Lines

And we come to the big one, the "Working Class Man" for the new millennium. Is the song perfect? The fact remains that the keyboard riff in the song is unoriginal, and the lyrical melody has proved to be troublesome to maintain live for the singer. And yet when the song is played live, the piece is so strong and so uniting that the audience is compelled to yell “I’m A SEX CHANGE!” at the top of their lungs. Indeed it IS the biggest Australian song of the year, revealing much of Daniel John’s writing ability and band’s playing in general. It is a demonstration of the power of using controlled restraint to build up a song; the quiet synths, the octave leap in the first chorus (see Powderfinger’s “Lost and Running” for another great octave leap), the drums kicking only halfway through the piece and so on. "Straight Lines" has gone on to be Silverchair’s biggest hit since "Tomorrow", and it is a credit to the band that it is still being played regularly six months after radios added it to their playlists.

Young Modern; Song 3: If You Keep Losing Sleep

A quirky tribute to insomnia, my first exposure to this song was in fact March 2006 when I attended the Clipsal 500 with Messrs Asikas and Gaillard. In retrospect it was perhaps not a clever move to open with this piece given the audience was composed of 20,000 bogans screaming for “Tomorrow” (myself included). It is the first song on the album to feature Van Dyke Parks’ orchestral arrangements, which sort of gives the piece a “Ren and Stimpy” dream sequence vibe if you will. Weird and brilliant, this NEEDS to be a single for the band to take their next step as artists challenging the status quo.

Young Modern; Song 4: Reflections Of A Sound

I was able to listen to an acoustic version of this song prior to the Young Modern, and its one of the few songs that holds up on its own without the other two guys. A fun, solid little pop number, if somewhat unremarkable. It is however blessed with pretty melodies and lyrics, and really there isn’t that much more you need. I’m glad that this track is released as a single; there’s something pleasant about middle Australia getting to hum this song in their cars on the way to work.

Young Modern; Song 5: Those Thieving Birds Part 1 / Strange Behaviour / Those Thieving Birds Part 2

The centrepiece of the album, and probably the most Dioramic piece of the album, in terms of studio ambition if not style. Daniel Johns is best known for being the songwriter and singer for Silverchair, but people often forget nowadays that he remains a seminal guitarist, and this track is the first on Young Modern to highlight that fact with intricate guitar work. The Van Dyke Parks orchestral backing, adding a cinematic soundtrack feel to the proceedings. Johns’ throws melodies all over the place, like a chef’s liberal use of potent spices. Surprisingly this track got one of the biggest reactions at the May Silverchair concert I attended with Shaun.

Young Modern; Song 6: The Man Who Knew Too Much

This song has a cool funky groove, and Paul Mac’s keyboards sound great with the rest of the band. Its probably my least favourite song on the album but it is a grower nonetheless.

Young Modern; Song 7: Waiting All Day

One of my favourites, this piece has a strong correlation with “Forever And A day” from the Dissociatives album, both musically and lyrically. This song has a great catchy chorus, and should be a future single.

Young Modern; Song 8: Mind Reader

The rocky riffy number, the fact that this is the closest to a Silverchair rock song on Young Modern is unfortunate. It is a fun track, but could have been better, Gillies’ drums in particular could have been beefed up a bit.

Young Modern; Song 9: Low

Shaun’s favourite song! Despite the blatant plagiarism of George Harrison’s slide guitar style, it is a great singalong and is one of the lyrical peaks of the album.

Young Modern; Song 10: Insomnia

A sort of sister song to Low, the lyrics are a bit more humourous and absurd. My, these reviews are getting shorter as I go. Meh.

Young Modern; Song 11: All Across The World

This song has one great melody which is stretched out throughout the whole song, and on the whole is a good ending for the album, although not in the realms of Steam Will Rise and After All These Years as in the previous albums.