Could they be the next U2. (The Script - The Script)

Member Name: bailey_kipper_uk

Product:	The Script - The Script
Date:	23/08/08 (197 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Good album, will sell well and will allow the band to do a second album

Disadvantages: Nothing overly new in terms of style

Ok, I taking a slight break from my album back catalogue in order to review this new album, that reached number 1 in the UK album chart last week. This is the debut album from this band from Dublin, hoping to be the next U2.

The lead singer is Danny O'Donoghue who in his own words is a "Raven haired, handsome, sensitive keyboard player with the vocal flexibility and technical range of an American soul legend." The guitarist is Mark Sheehan who is also the "Shaven headed production whizz". Lastly there is Glen Power, the oldest of the trio at 28, and he is apparantly a "Taciturn drummer and multi-instrumentalist, the funkiest white man in Dublin."

I would describe their style as soft rock but mixed with some hip hop/r 'n' b lyrical styling. Similar to what Timbaland tried with One Republic recently.

Their debut album is quite good as was proved by it getting to number one (I know it's not always the case). For some reason I have a slightly different version of the album, but this seems to just be a slightly different track order of the 2nd - 4th tracks.

The first song on the album is 'We Cry' which was the debut single. This only managed number 13 on the UK Single chart which looking back now is a little surprising. This song introduces the hip hop style but mixes it up with the more soft rock style that they also enjoy, it makes for an nice combination. It's a good song and a good debut. 9/10

'Talk you down' is the next track and sits inbetween two singles. It's more pop/rock than hip hop, and should help this album appeal to a variety of fans. The lead singer Danny has a good voice and they don't try to sound Irish (like Boyzone or Westlife). This is another decent song that fits well on the album. It's about trying to save a relationship thats on the verge of 'suicide'. 8/10

'The man who can't be moved' is track 3 and this has received a fair amount of play, especially of the video. It's about a chap who won't move from his spot on the corner of a street, metaphorically. He means that he can't move on in relationship terms also as he's still in love with his current/ex lover, aaaahhhh. Slightly wreaks of desperation though. This song made it to number 3 in the charts. 8/10

'Before the Worst' is a possible single, it's another good song, good mix of styles again with some standard but well sung lyrics.
7/10

Track 5 is 'Breakeven' which is a slight change of style to a more vocally led track with only basic backing. Again it's an decent track but definitely an album track this time. The lyrics are again very good and again about love, well about heartbreak anyway. The music is again good also, very commercial, but fairly standard throughout the album on most songs. 6/10

This is followed by 'Rusty Halo' which contradicts slightly the last song with a more rocky approach. However again the vocals take the lead and the music provided is often a backing to this, rather than amplyfying the feelings being sung about. 7/10

Follwing on from this is 'The End Where I Begin'. The lyrics are of course good and like the whole album are very well written. A slower song this but one this speeds up for the choruses with a more soft rock style. 7/10

Next we have 'If you see Kay', which sounds familiar... It reminds me a lot of 'We Cry' at the start, luckily it doesn't continue like this. Kay is a woman, which suprised me, didn't expect that. It's another song about love and about trying to win back someone that he's broken up with. Again there's good lyrics, music and vocals. It's definitely an album that could be played whilst chilling and drinking a few glasses of wine, in fact that's what I'm doing right now. Except I seem to have developed a slight red wine cough, (though this maybe to do with the gardening I did earlier). I recommend a Merlot to go with this album... 7/10

The next track is 'Fall for anything', aka Track 9. This album is a good length at 41 minutes and we've just passed half an hour at this point. However there's not anything new coming along yet. Though this is a bit of a mix of vocals with a variety of lyrics going on in quick succession rather than the clean single voice of earlier tracks. Again the music is more of a backing than a lead. 6/10

The last official track is I'm Yours and like a few albums I've reviewed recently this is also a disappointment and a slow dull track, why do people keep doing this to me. In fairness it's a nice change to everything else and a change of style, if you were having a quiet night chilling on the sofa then it's fine. Luckily there's a bonus track, I want to skip now, I've managed 3 minutes of this... 5/10

'Anybody there' picks it back up slightly with another decent track, which of course is well sung with great music that backs it up nicely. 6/10

Summary
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This is a well polished album that delivers consistently. However it's a bit too consistent, a bit too polished, and there's not enough to it to make it part of my regular playlist. However as an album to stick on for a quiet evening and a glass of wine it's great and should be left by the CD player.

Summary: Another new band, one with a nice sound, but nothing groundbreaking.