Album Review: The Common Thread

No Broadcast started out in the noughties and started releasing their music in 2011, when commonly regarded as a three piece.

Two EPs and three albums later the band has evolved into a musical collective which is predominantly the vehicle for musician and vocalist Josh Braden’s eclectic soundscape experimentation. Josh loves the sound of sound and the space between us, and his latest effort seeks to establish a common thread. The thread which is between us as a link and between us as a space. A common thread which identifies common ground. All & Now is a segue between the thread and the ground in common.

And whereas 2022’s Lie in Orbit embraced big progressive movements with frenetic jazzy and electronic beats, The Common Thread, which was written and recorded around the same time, takes us on a more mellow, dream like psychedelic journey through the times of sound.  

In a nutshell, it’s where Radiohead might encounter Yoshi up against the Robots with the Flaming Lips, and that is indeed some space between the two albums as we follow the Road Signs to the End of the Road.

Dreamy synth sequences between lush string landscapes underpinned by gentle guitar and the soaring falsetto of Josh take us to The Shore where staccato drums crash like waves before a gentle Genesis-outro grounds us safely, if not commonly.

Only for Wayne Coyne to morph into Thom Yorke and we revert to the Terrified radio head, this is indeed music for the mind and whatever help is needed. An immediate segue into another progressive phase is Etched into our consciousness as we drift on through the space between us. Or maybe there is no space, just a thread, or maybe a theory about string which supports time travel in one direction but not both. We can go back in time but not come back again which is why we don’t try. Instead, we ground ourselves in The Understanding that a simple melody advancing slowly and layered with sound is all we need to stay safe and sane in the simple conclusion that this is just beautiful music which flows and flows without any further need to broadcast.

Josh Braden writes and produces the music and plays guitar and keys and sings. Thomas Isbister is clever and subtle on drums and bass. Tom Harris orchestrates the strings, both real and synthetic, and Ryan Fisherman steals in sideways on lapsteel.

The Common Thread is out now and there’s vinyl as well so don’t rush to download but prepare yourself for a journey through time space which is both endearing and ultimately safe. My only disclaimer is to assure you that there were no substances consumed in the crafting of this review.