Featuring five reworked songs from ‘Young New England’ and ‘Listen & Forgive’ and a new one in the form of the title track, Transit’s ‘Futures & Sutures’ feels a little like a stopgap release from the Boston band to tie in with their appearance on the acoustic basement tour early next year in the US.
‘Young New England’ didn’t quite land with the same punch earlier this year that its predecessor did in 2011 – not for being a bad record, but definitely for being a “different” record – and this release feels as much an attempt to tie a divided fan base as it does a tour promo release. The band succeed in both of those areas here – hearing the songs done in the same style certainly hammers home that the band didn’t change that much coming into ‘Young New England’ as some publications and fans made out – and stripped back, the band’s attention to detail in their songwriting is even more clear.
‘Long Lost Friends’ is great way to kick the release off, and ‘So Long, So Long’ sounds excellent in this guise as well. ‘Listen & Forgive’ is such a well written song that it’s almost impossible to make it sound bad. ‘Young New England’ actually sticks out like a sore thumb on the record, being heavier than the first time round in many ways, and the main hook loses a bit of clarity here with the different harmonies. That said, the style does suit the track well overall and the instrumentation works well going into ‘Over Your Head’. It’s probably the most accomplished rework on the release overall, and it’s a fine way to close down the reworked editions.
One of the biggest surprises on the release is that ‘Futures & Sutures’ itself is instrumental and acts more like a teaser for new material than it does new material itself. It’s an odd move for Transit, but it’s a lovely bit of arrangement regardless. Overall, ‘Futures & Sutures’ is pretty unlikely to expand the Transit fanbase too much, but it should serve as a timely reminder of what they’re capable of. Worth a listen if you’re a fan, but it might go over your head otherwise.
TOM AYLOTT