The Departure - Inventions (2008)

The Departure was an English rock band from Northampton and were formed in January 2004, after starting as a collaboration between a former Christian commune member David Jones (vocals/guitar) and his friend Sam Harvey. After recruiting old school associates Ben Winton (bass) and Lee Irons (guitar), the line-up was completed with the addition of Andy Hobson (drums) via a musician's ad website. They were signed to Parlophone after playing only three gigs, and being together for just four months, a fact that attracted a considerable level of derision and scepticism. Touring slots with The Killers, Feeder, Duran Duran, Placebo, The Tears and a reformed Gang Of Four soon followed, as the band sought to build a support base ahead of their first slew of releases. Debut single 'All Mapped Out' was released on 2 August 2004, debuting at number 30 on the UK singles chart, and it was included on the soundtrack to the 2006 video game 'Driver: Parallel Lines', while follow-up single 'Be My Enemy' emerged on 18 October 2004, and was included on the soundtrack to 'FIFA 06'. They released their debut album 'Dirty Words', later that year, and it was trailed the week before its release by the reissue of the 'All Mapped Out' single, but disappointingly it charted lower than the original. The album drew a middling response from critics, who varied between praising it for its bleak, futuristic atmosphere, and slating it for its perceived superficiality and over-reliance on the music of the 1980's for inspiration. By early 2006, Irons had left the band citing artistic differences, and Hobson followed later that year, being replaced by the original drummer, Simon Alexander. The four-piece began work on the follow-up to 'Dirty Words' in Grouse Lodge Studios, Ireland, and it was given an expected release date of 2007. However, 2007 came and went, and in January 2008 the band announced that they had split up after being dropped by Parlophone. In 2010 Jones formed a new band called NewIslands, who released the single 'Out Of Time', while later in the decade he formed a duo called Born Stranger, but The Departure's second studio album has yet to see the light of day, and so for any fans who fondly remember 'Dirty Words', here is their 'Inventions' album, which should have appeared in 2008. 

Track listing

01 We Will Be The Only Ones
02 7 Years
03 Love Forever
04 Young And Clever
05 Pieces
06 Chemicals
07 Not Alone
08 Lights Go Out
09 Falling
10 Whose Side Are You On