The Album

Split Seven Ways released this twelve track album on September 1st of 2008. Up To No Good is a chronological series of songs all about our four favorite Marauders – Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs. All proceeds from this album go to the Gender Identity Research & Education Society and the Colours Youth Network. Let’s see what trouble we can get into, so tap the map and let’s go!

The Tracks

Together Til The End starts the album off with a sweet song about the four Marauders’ friendship. My favorite lyrics from this song are from the last verse:

The future’s looking kind of scary
But it’s still far away
No point in worrying about tomorrow
When we’ve still got today

The next song is from my favorite character, Remus Lupin. Up To No Good tells of Remus’s feelings about his friends and how complicated they are, especially when they are bullying other students. I love that the band took that scene from the books and made it into a whole song from his point of view.

Where You Belong is a lovely slow song. Calming instrumentals are the foundation of this lullaby-like love song to Remus during his time when he transitions into a werewolf. There’s a beautiful violin solo in the middle of this piece. It is clear that the singer cares deeply for Remus and will go above and beyond to help him during the most painful time of the month.

James promises Lily, in Hand On My Heart, that he is going to leave his trouble-making days behind and be more serious moving forward if it means he can stay with her. Knowing how both of their lives end makes this song very bittersweet. I had A Lot of Emotions listening to it.

Peter Pettigrew gets his own song in Big Bad World. The instruments play in a way that makes it sound like tavern music, and a bit like a sea shanty. As much as many of us dislike Peter because of his actions, I actually really enjoyed this song. It was one of my favorites from the album.

Sirius asks James and Remus for their forgiveness of his mistake in the song Conviction. For me, this song perfectly encapsulates Sirius’s feelings as told in the original story. It’s honest, heartbreaking, and very powerful.

Azkaban Interlude is a wordless haunting track which reminds me of damp chains and mist floating through the dark. You can hear the ocean in the background as the waves lap against the jagged rocks. I loved this simple chilling song.

A lovely song from Remus to Sirius after he returns from Azkaban, Every Star In The Sky is sweet and sad. I adored the instrumental performance in this piece. Split Seven Ways does an excellent job conveying the thoughts and feelings of the characters with their lyrics.

There are some humorous lyrics in Done In By Curtains, but the fact that it’s about Sirius’s death still makes it a sad song. It’s a great tribute to his character and all of the hurdles he went through in life. The harmonies in this one reminded me of all of the unknown whispers behind the veil.

Pettigrew gets another song in Right Hand Man, which is an interesting piece about Peter’s opinions of Snape and vice versa. Even though they’re both important members of Voldemort’s regiment, they hate each other even after so many years have passed since their school days. The string accompaniment was absolutely lovely, especially at the very end of the song.

Remus sings about Tonks in the next song, So Sweet. He struggles with his emotions pulling him in opposite directions – his love and appreciation for her versus the knowledge that he is older, poorer, and dangerous. It’s a great song that is bittersweet, which the vocal performance reflects perfectly.

The Forest Again is the last song on this album. You know by this point that I love harmonies, which made this song one of my favorites. As Lily, James, Sirius, and Remus walk with Harry one last time to face Voldemort, there were tears in my eyes as I smiled through this song. What a beautiful way to end this album.

In Summary

I loved the performance of this album. The song topics and themes, lyrics, vocals, instrumentals, and overall emotions put into each recording made every song really special. If you know of anyone who is a fan of any or all of the Marauders, I hope you’ll pass this onto them so they can enjoy the experience! I rate this album 4/4 Marauders.