The Living End- State of Emergency

Wait for it... yes, another The Living End album! I'll freely admit I'm such a fanboy that I'd probably even rave about a recording of them tuning their instruments before a show...

This album represents the end of an era. Released in 2006 (three years after Modern Artillery), it was the final album before they adopted the heavier, slower style of the following albums.

I was actually meant to review this album after their 2nd EP, but I needed to use Reverend Horton Heat in between to "cleanse the palate". On one hand, I respect a band who look to evolve their sound. On the other hand, the early punkabilly style was so unique that I would be happy if they kept releasing albums like that until the end of time! Therefore a direct comparison with their early recordings would not have done this album justice.

'Till the End does a great job to grab your attention. I have no idea what the lyrics are discussing, but they fill the gaps nicely! This is a pumping "four on the floor" rock song with some nice subtle use of horns in the background.

Instrumentally, Long Live the Weekend achieves similar heights and it has a great singalong chorus. However I find the lyrics in the verses very banal and a big turn-off. While I'm moaning, the recording quality on this song is a bit strange. It often  feels somehow over-processed, like it's very compressed (especially the vocals). Also, the sound gets quite messy when the band is at full noise.

The Modern Artillery style of long, dramatic tales (eg The Room) is present for No Way Out. The fade in intensity at the very end is a disappointment, I wish the song went out on a high. However the rest of the song is an enjoyable headbanging journey, similar to the longer songs on Bleed Like Me. Another "mini-The Room" is Order of the Day. It takes a while to find its feet, but once it gets there it's inspiring and powerful rock at its best.

Similarly, Nothing Lasts Forever and One Step Behind are fantastic storytelling rock. In Nothing Lasts Forever the music mainly serves to complement the lyrics, while the instruments take greater prominence in One Step Behind. Both have wonderful composition and layering.

Wake Up is an incredibly emotional four-and-a-half minutes for me every time I hear it. It is such a pure drug, like the best of U2 distilled into one song. I can't really say much more, because words fail me when trying to describe this song. Incredible.

Back to the safe ground of headbanging rock! We Want More is a solid pub rock anthem. Perhaps the recording quality might sound better after a few beers, too. Because, when listening sober, the cymbals and vocals sound like a badly compressed mp3 at times. What's on Your Radio is perhaps from an alternate universe where the band moulded themselves around Prisoner of Society for the rest of their career. What's on Your Radio has lots of catchy elements, but somehow feels tacky (perhaps even contrived). The song was a successful single at the time, but has well and truly worn out its welcome. (Yes, this totally undermines my opening rant!)

Following the "mini-rock operas", Reborn is the perfect refresher. A great catchy pub singalong, with genuine emotion behind it. The bridge is awful, but its got plenty of company with other brilliant songs that have terrible bridges (for example, Bush's Glycerine). Perhaps it's a deliberate tactic to make the rest of the song shine in comparison?!

Nowhere Town is the result of perfecting the ska-esque beat (which they made of dog's breakfast of in I Can't Give You What I Haven't Got). Here, it works brilliantly, and the guitar work in the chorus is a highlight.

State of Emergency works to a pretty generic formula of riff rock verses and the "four on the floor" chorus. But it works for me! Black Cat is similar, but spoiled for me by the twee guitar riff in the verses. On the bright side, the chorus is very catchy.

The final song, Into the Red, and I go way back! I heard them play it years before at a festival, where it worked a treat to rev the crowd up (pun intended!). However, it didn't appear on the following album, so I thought it was lost to history. So it was a wonderful surprise to find this hedonistic and anarchistic (overly long words to describe the Sex Pistols style...) party rock song years later on this album.

Favourite songs

'Till the End, No Way Out, Wake Up, Nothing Last Forever, One Step Behind, Reborn, Nowhere Town, Into the Red

Worthwhile?

For me, this is never a question! In fact, it for a long time I would have said it was my favourite Living End album. It might not be as inventive as their other albums, but it is still a great listen.

Reverend Horton Heat- Revival

Revival is the 8th studio album from Reverend Horton Heat. It was released in 2004, two years after Lucky 7.

Let's start with the title track, because I find the instrumental opener (The Happy Camper) too twee. The song Revival sets a great mood. Perhaps it wanders around aimlessly at times, but the driving energy combined with the ebbs and flows make it an enjoyable listen. Rumble Strip uses a similar approach to good effect. It creates a solid rock'n'roll song (about a car, of course!) with a nice hint of country music stylings.

None of the four ballads (Someone in Heaven, Honky Tonk Girl, Lonesome Man and We Belong Forever) appeal at all. I'm not sure how they're different to the fantastic Or Is It Just Me (from It's Martini Time), yet I somehow find them worlds apart. If It Ain't Got Rhythm is a bit more upbeat musically, however the awful chorus is a deal-breaker for me, and the stop-start nature makes it more of a novelty than a song you can properly get into. My final whinge(!) is New York Girls. In isolation, it's not a bad song. However, I find it to be a poor cousin of Hurts Your Daddy Bad from their previous album.

The news is better regarding recording quality, with the CD sounding pretty good and the instruments being very nicely balanced. Minor quibbles is that the bass guitar is a bit boomy and the kick-drum lacks some meat. Otherwise, the guitar has wonderful character and the cymbals are sweet little punctuations.

Now for the fast stuff! My favourite songs on this album are all simple upbeat numbers. Nothing very innovative, but great fun. The rock'n'roll energy of Callin' in Twisted gets me bouncing every time. Similarly, Octopus Mode is highly infectious (I suspect it is a cover, but apparently the internet says not). The fantastic lyrics lead to mental images of very immature dance moves!  

Indigo Friends leans more towards headbanging psychobilly, and executes it very well, although it does drag out a bit at the end. Goin' Back Home would be a riot in a moshpit, unfortunately this energy doesn't translate well to the CD. Back to the rock'n'roll, Party Mad is another derivative yet highly enjoyable tune, with the piano part working well to give it a unique element.

Favourite songs

Callin' in Twisted, Indigo Friends, Octopus Mode, Party Mad

Worthwhile?

Hmmm. There's a much narrower range of enjoyment than the other Reverend Horton Heat albums. I really dig their style, but this album wouldn't really be missed.

The Living End- It's For Your Own Good

This is the second EP from The Living End. It was released in 1996, one year after their debut Hellbound, and one year before Prisoner of Society shot them into the stratosphere.

From Here On In kicks things off with a great punk thrash. The energy is great, and the hint of rockabilly gives it a point of difference compared to run-of-the-mill punk of this era. Problem is similar, with a fantastic chorus, but I find the stop-start verses destroy the groove.

As a bonus, the recording quality is much improved over the Hellbound EP. The instruments are much better balanced, the vocals sound much nicer and the slapping of the double-bass gives the sound a unique character.

English Army reminds me of Save the Day (from their debut album a few years later) in many ways. It is grunty punkabilly perfection, dripping with catchy hooks but also managing to not sound twee. Similarly, One More Cell seems like a predecessor to Fly Away. The both feature the winning combination of an angry chorus contrasted by softer introspective verses.

The grunty rock interpretation of The Cure's 10:15 Saturday Night is a solid effort, however I prefer the understated style of the original.

The slamming instrumental intro of Stay Away From Me could have been an instrumental song in its own right, ala Hellbound. While the punk vocal section isn't as unique, it does a great job in continuing the high energy levels.

Favourite songs

From Here On In, English Army, One More Cell, Stay Away From Me

Worthwhile?

Where Hellbound is obviously a predecessor to the Prisoner of Society EP, the slightly more intricate It's For Your Own Good is a closer relation to the other songs off the debut album. Both are great.

The Living End- Hellbound

Released in 1994, this is The Living End's debut EP.

Of course, as a debut EP from some kids still in school, the recording is hardly audiophile quality. On the other hand, the cymbals do sound nice.

Trace of Doubt, The Living End and Mispent Youth are all simple punkabilly thrashes. To me, Trace of Doubt stands out, thanks to some great simple hooks and a catchy chorus. Headlines, despite the great driving energy, is a bit generic. However it's insightful lyrics and wonderful "lonesome guitar" interludes make the song stand out for me.

Hellbound is an incredibly mature effort for a debut EP. First off, it is a brave move for a punk/psychobilly band to use an instrumental as a title track. And what a brilliant instrumental it is. The composition is fantastic and the song has a great "lonesome cowboy" mood.

Every time I hear Tabletop Show, I wish they'd extended the first verse, so that the song has more time to "settle" before the first chorus. Regardless, it's a great sleazy stroller. The menacing, sleazy verses are a highlight. Strange is another break from fast-paced punkabilly. However, I prefer the version on the Prisoner of Society EP, due to the more polished recording quality.

So Lonely is a cute little pop/rockabilly ditty, very similar in feel to Stray Cat Strut. Musically, it's not that interesting, but I find the lyrics endearing.

Favourite songs

Trace of Doubt, Hellbound, Tabletop Show, Headlines, So Lonely

Wortwhile?

Yes. Not just as the forebear to the band's later albums, but as a great little collection of songs in its own right. I think it's more than nostalgia; if another band released an like tomorrow, I'm pretty sure I'd be all over it...

Johnny Cash- The Essential Johnny Cash

Although a "Best Of", Johnny Cash was still producing new material well after this double CD was released in 2002. This album mainly features his early hits from 1955-1970, plus a handful of songs from 1970-1996.

Up front, I must admit that his signature style of rockabilly/folk isn't really my cup of tea. So rather than being a competent execution of a style I enjoy, every song on the (impressively long) list of "Favourite Songs" below has worked hard to earn my its place.

Recording quality? Well, don't set your hopes too high for these very old recordings. It's got a similar lack of highs, lows and dynamics as Buddy Holly Greatest Hits album, which ended up with a "low-fi" grade from me recently. But Johnny Cash's style is more dominated by the vocals and acoustic guitars, so it's more forgiving on the recording quality (also it lacks some of the obvious flaws of the Buddy Holly record). One thing that stands out is that the female vocals are lacking any top-end, but another standout it that Johnny Cash's vocals are wonderfully powerful and full of emotion.

The album has 38 songs, so to avoid another TLDR post, I'll just focus on the ones I like...

I Walk The Line is pretty generic musically, for me it is carried by the fantastic lyrics. The more sorrowful There You Go also uses this recipe to good effect. Man in Black (a later song- released in 1979) is a similar style, but with more musical sophistication thanks to the chord progressions and build-ups within the song. And the lyrics remain just as insightful and poetic as the earlier hits.

The oddball inclusion of the mariachi trumpet on Ring of Fire is a masterstroke, and combines with Cash's other strength to create a standout song. Guess Things Happen That Way reminds me of Bob Dylan, as is well executed. All Over Again provides some great contrast with its upbeat feel.  Fulsom Prison Blues is, of course, a classic. However I'm not a fan of this live recording- much of the power is missing from his vocals. Sunday Morning Coming Down gives a wonderfully vivid view of the world through a hangover.

Duets don't normally appeal to me, but again Cash breaks the rules! The melancholy It Ain't Me Babe and Jackson both work a treat, with the irony of a duelling couple combining to produce beautiful art a highlight in itself. On the other hand, even the lovesong duet If I Were a Carpenter manages to feel heartfelt, rather than the saccharine tackiness that often afflicts duets.

Another style that rarely appeals to me is spoken word. But The Ballad of Ira Hayes and Ragged Old Flag are both highly emotive. In particular, Ragged Old Flag is incredibly inspiring, give me the shivers down my spine. Similarly,
Song of the Patriot tugs at the heartstrings, with brilliant phrases such as
I don't believe in violence, I'm a God-fearing man. 
But I'd stand up for my country just as long as I could stand.

Musically, I also enjoy Song of the Patriot, thanks to the more sophisticated composition of this later recording. The extra instruments aren't a distration, they perfectly complement the inspiring lyrics.

On a lighter note, The One on the Right is on the Left, A Boy Named Sue and One Piece at a Time are great little comedy interludes.

Finally, the more modern recordings show a wonderful evolution of Cash's style. Slightly more sophisticated musically, they also add an army of backing instruments without the usual result of feeling like a tacky addon. (Ghost) Riders in the Sky is brilliantly moody and illustrative. Similarly, The Wanderer is a winning combination of (carefully restrained use of) modern electronics and Cash's haunting yet powerful voice.

This incredible voice earned Cash a highly successful career covering 58 years. This compilation proves the lifelong success is thoroughly deserved.

Favourite songs

I Walk the Line, There You Go, Guess Things Happen That Way, All Over Again, Ring of Fire, It Ain't Me Babe, The One on the Right is on the Left, Jackson, Fulsom Prison Blues, A Boy Named Sue, If I Were a Carpenter, Sunday Morning Coming Down, Man in Black, Ragged Old Flag, One Piece at a Time, (Ghost) Riders in the Sky, Song of the Patriot, Highwayman, The Wanderer

Worthwhile?

Just look at the size of that list above!

Stray Cats- Best Of

This compilation was released in 1996, about 4 years after the band recorded their final studio album. As well as being central to the 1980s rockabilly revival, the band are also claimed to have introduced a new style by combining rockabilly with punk rock.

Listening 30 years later, it's easy to doubt the "punk" claim, as they sound quite homely. But listening to some punk of the time and slightly earlier "un-revived" rockabilly proves that they did indeed bring a harder edge to the genre.

But let's dismiss the ditties first. Stray Cat Strut, (She's) Sexy and Seventeen, C'mon Everybody and Fishnet Stockings may have been bankable hits, but they're definitely not the bands finest work. Often as banal as any Kai$ha song, they rely heavily on rose-tinted nostalgia and the simplicity of the songs soon wears thin.

Speaking of "thin", time for an audio quality rant! The drums lack any power whatsoever, and the hollow snare often sounds like it was actually recorded in the alley outside the recording studio (not a good thing!). Aside from the slapping, the bass guitar is quite faint. On the plus side, the jangly guitar sound has great character and the lead vocals are mostly clear.

Checklist for a rock'n'roll hit: energetic guitar lines, catchy chorus, sharp breaks and lyrics no deeper than discussing than coiffures and a Saturday night out with a pretty girl. Done! Rock This Town ticks all the boxes, and throwing a bit of punk energy into the mix results in a classic song. Built For Speed is similarly great- a nostalgic Rockabilly 101 tale of a cool car. Personally I prefer the verses to the chorus, but nonetheless it's a great song.

Providing some welcomed contrast to the the saccharine 50s love-fest, Little Miss Prissy has... ahem... balls. The riff perfectly suits the harder edge to the lyrics, and I really dig the backing screams at random intervals. Runaway Boys has a wonderful menacing feel, with the double-bass and guitar working perfectly together. My favourite section is the build-up to the chorus, sometimes played as an instrumental, sometimes with the following emotive lyrics:
Running faster,
Faster all the time
You're under-age and
God knows that's a crime

The recording quality of Too Hip Gotta Go (especially the drums) is even worse than that which prompted my earlier rant. It's well worth turning a blind ear too, though, because it's a fine rockabilly ballad. I fined the musicality a bit more inventive than "yet another rockabilly song", and the breaks in the chorus work well. Musically, My One Desire follows a similar style and is thankfully much better recorded. The riffs and energy are highlights, also I really like the different structure due to the lack of a chorus.

I tend to think of Baby Blue Eyes as an instrumental, with the occasional lyrics thrown in. And it's also a great song.

As for the pop hits, personally I'd prefer to go back to the originals and listen to Chuck Berry etc. Rebels Rule is a try-hard teen anthem, made worse by knowing that it's designed for nostalgic appeal. And a typically middle-aged audience makes (She's) Sexy and Seventeen quite creepy. Gonna Ball drops the awkward lyrics, but still doesn't appeal to me. Jeannie, Jeannie, Jeannie is much better. It brings a dash of punk rock spice to the table, which differentiates it and gives it great energy.

Now for the good stuff.

The a cappella I Won't Stand in Your Way is a wonderfully oddball inclusion. I must admit that a lot of the appeal is the contrast, but it's a great song in its own right. The bridge is a particular highlight for me. Speaking of oddball, Ubangi Stomp appeals to me for all the wrong reasons! The bassline is very awkward for ska, and to a lesser degree the drums. But this strangeness makes for a unique style, which has some kind of novelty value for this ska fanatic.

My all-time favourite Stray Cats song is Storm the Embassy. It is a great example of political protest rock, as per The Clash at their finest. The lyrics are brilliantly illustrative and scathing. Although the recording doesn't have a "big" sound, the guitar riffs have enough power to singlehandedly raise the roof! Fantastic.  

Rumble in Brighton is quite similar to Runaway Boys but with added attitude, as is necessary when describing fights involving skinheads and knives. Again, huge power, thanks to brilliant guitar and bass work. I thoroughly enjoy  the ebb and flow of the menacing build-ups into the riffs, and the explosion of raw energy for the ending.

While the rose-tinted rockabilly often doesn't do it for me, throwing a dash of 80s punk into the mix is a masterstroke.

Favourite songs

Rock This Town, Built for Speed, Little Miss Prissy, Too Hip Gotta Go, My One Desire, I Won't Stand in Your Way, Runaway Boys, Baby Blue Eyes, Jeannie Jeannie Jeannie, Ubangi Stomp, Storm the Embassy, Rumble in Brighton

Worthwhile?

Ironically, the actual hits don't appeal much to me, due to philosophical misgivings. However the "B-sides" makes this CD a treasured part of my collection.

Franz Ferdinand- Self Titled

As the massively successful debut from the Scottish rockers, this album was the hit of 2004 thanks to the breakthrough single Take Me Out.

My copy of this album was actually included in a promotional bundle when I purchased a Sony MiniDisk player (remember them?! wow, it seems like a lifetime ago!). But thanks to the Sony Copy Control, I was unable to transfer this (Sony) album which I legally owned onto my (Sony) MiniDisk player for portable listening. Very ironic, and a shameful example Sony's punishing its customers under the pretext of reducing piracy.

Now that I've got that off my chest.. umm back to Take Me Out. It's a classic rock opera ala Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody, but unfortunately I've heard it a million times and am over it.

The audio quality is mixed news. For starters, the bass guitar is very boomy at times, at least on my stereo. On the plus side, the guitars are nicely jangly and the layering is quite good. However, the louder moments lack full impact, I think because the guitars gets lost in the mix and the drums (particularly the snare) become muffled. At these times, it seems to be lacking in midrange and harsh at high frequencies. But perhaps I'm being overly picky and just need to accept it doesn't have a "big" sound. Rant much, I do...

The album starts solidly with Jacqueline and Tell Her Tonight. Aside from a poor chorus (Jacqueline) and bland lyrics (Tell Her Tonight), but are very good disco-rock songs.

Taking it to another level is The Dark of the Matinee. This is brilliant catchy art-rock. The introspective lyrics are a personal highlight (as well as the phrase "dark side of the matinee" for some reason!). This is perfectly supported by a catchy disco-rock chorus, which brilliantly contrasts the sparser yet equally infectious verses. Another highlight is the build-up through the bridge and final chorus.

In my book, Cheating on You is frenetic yet lacking substance. On a brighter note, Auf Achse and Come On Home are more examples of wonderfully catchy disco-rock goodness. Speaking of catchy, This Fire is a simple little song, yet the hooks are wonderfully infectious.

Perhaps my favourite song on the album is Darts of Pleasure. It is great fun, and I really enjoy its contrast and flow. The lyrics are superbly irreverant, topped off with some random German: "Ich heisse Super Phantastische. Ich trinke Schampus mit Lachsfisch" (loosely translated as "My middle name is Super Fantastic, I drink champagne with salmon fish"). Similarly Come on Home is yet another great example of feelgood disco-rock.

Michael is again similar, but deserves some of its own celebration. The style of upbeat party rock never gets old, and the lyrics are again a highlight. They tell a great little story of dancefloor self-discovery and letting loose in gay frivolity (entendre intended).

Favourite songs

Jacqueline, The Dark of the Matinee, Auf Achse, This Fire, Darts of Pleasure, Michael, Come on Home

Worthwhile?

This album is wall-to-wall fun.

Placebo- Sleeping with Ghosts

Released in 2003, Sleeping With Ghosts is Placebo's fourth album. It continues their post-grunge style (the common description of "alternative rock" is just lazy!), with some upbeat stadium rock thrown in at times.

This is not a review of the whole album- only the parts I enjoy. Unfortunately, I often find the vocals whiney, which is a deal-breaker for me. This is just a personal preference, not a fault of the band, so I won't bore you with my own whining about the whiney vocals!

The recording quality is mediocre. While it lends character to the more experimental songs, it robs the upbeat stadium rock songs of some of their intensity. The instruments often sound hollow and the overuse of stereo imaging (ie the snare being located in the left speaker and the hi-hat in the right) means it feels disjointed. And did anyone actually master this album?? The sound is so inconsistent between songs, for example there's very little bass on The Bitter End but then Plasticine blows your head off with it! On a positive note, The Bitter End does sound very good and the layering in it works really well.

The stadium-rock opener Bulletproof Cupid kicks things off with a bang. It is quite simple yet wonderfully catchy and brimming with energy.

English Summer Rain is a bit whiney (sorry!), but I find it works ok as an interlude.

This Picture is a brilliant example of Placebo at its best. The vocals are wonderfully illustrative and poetic, perfectly supported by the band hammering out feelgood stadium rock.

Second Sight is another in this style, however lacks the inspiration of This Picture. However, The Bitter End absolutely nails it, making for my all-time favourite Placebo song. Similar to the band The Killers, it has the feel of a club song, with it's great use of repetition and samples. Supported by a great guitar riff, thumping rock beat and excellent guitar riff, it makes for an outstanding song. The ending is a particular highlight, I love how it builds up to 110% intensity.

At a gentler level, Special Needs and Protect Me From What I Want are nice ballads, with the piano part being a great addition to these songs.

Favourite songs

Bulletproof Cupid, This Picture, The Bitter End, Special Needs, Protect Me From What I Want

Worthwhile?

It's probably true that I don't properly understand Placebo enough to properly appreciate this album. Yet the handful of songs that I do enjoy are enough to just scrape this album across the line for me. 

The Stokes- First Impressions of Earrth

As the third album from The Strokes, First Impressions of Earth was the follow-up to Room on Fire. It was released in 2005 and was the first album to significantly break away from the retro sound and image they established with Is This It.

While I thoroughly enjoy Is This It, I feel that the novelty retro sound had run its course, so the greater range of First Impressions is much appreciated. Similarly, the bands image often feels contrived, so some of my favourite moments on this album are when they drop the "cooler than thou" act and cut loose. It's much more enjoyable when they raise a rock'n'roll sweat, at the expense of compromising their meticulously crafted image.

But it doesn't start out well. Clinging to the retro values of previous albums are the lyrics of the opening song, You Only Live Once. I find it "too cool for scool" (a perception not helped by the band looking like punces in the video clip!). And while the verses and chorus are each nice in their own right, they don't fit together very well.

The recording quality is going for that "retro" sound, which... ahem... is not to my cup of tea. (note: yes I have totally back-flipped on this since originally writing this review!) And who on earth thought it was a good idea to put half of the drums in each ear for the song Razorblade? It's really disconcerting, and I'd rather listen to it in mono!

Enough of my whingeing... Juicebox is uncharacteristically aggressive and unrestrained; and it's brilliant. It is brimming with great hooks, the swirling menace of the guitar and drums works a treat, and the outro injects a great contrast. Finally, the icing on the cake is a huge chorus that any rock band would be proud of.

On The Other Side features a very nice groove and is a highlight for me.

However, Heart in a Cage is similar and even better. This is one of my all-time favourite songs. Great verses, great chorus, nicely contrasting bridge, great lyrics- this song has it all. The drums are a particular highlight, with interesting patterns perfectly complementing the foreground action, and the wonderfully messy crashing cymbals towards the end of each verse creates a great build-up. In fact, the drumming on this album is consistently brilliant. Back to fawning over Heart In A Cage, the unusual approach of a relatively low-key chorus works a treat. For me, this song is always a wonderfully enjoyable way to spend three and a half minutes. Of the lyrics, my favourite (albeit slightly misheard) are:
Your sun will be shining
And my children will burn

Vision of Division starts with a bang, although the drums are disappointingly muffled when it matters. While I find the verses a bit so-so, this is ok because they work well within the structure of the song. The chorus is fantastic, especially the headbanging second half.

At the other end of the intensity spectrum is Ask Me Anything. The contrast provided by this gentle strings-based ballad is wonderful. Although it's best you stop the song at 2:12, because after this it becomes flogging a dead horse.

Starting similarly ballad-esque is 15 Minutes. However this song sucks. Actually, it's not even a song, rather a awkward mish-mash of ideas haphazardly thrown together. Razorblade is similarly disorganised in the verses (too many instruments trying to be too intricate at the same time), although it does have a good chorus. While I'm ranting, Ize of the World and Evening Sun are generic throwbacks to their earlier retro style.

Fear of Sleep has some flaws, but also an ace up its sleeve. I'm not inspired by most of the song, the "quietening down" for the start of the second chorus is awkwardly implemented and it's disappointing that the drums sound muffled during the soaring moments. However said soaring moments are fantastic. The  "You're no fun" refrain is wonderfully raw and passionate, and makes for a great singalong. Great times. Finally, Red Light is a nice catchy pop song to go out on, well supported by great lyrics.

Favourite songs

Juicebox, Heart in a Cage, On the Other Side, Vision of Division, Ask Me Anything, Fear of Sleep, Red Light

Worthwhile?

Strokes fans will probably strongly disagree, but I believe the band greatly benefited from dropping the retro styling. Which makes this a great rock album.