The Strokes - First Impressions Of Earth

The Strokes first burst onto the scene in 2001 with their bold debut "Is This It?", sparking a garage rock movement which saw the emergence of bands such as Franz Ferdinand, Bloc Party and The Libertines among many others. With two critically aclaimed albums already under their belts, one wonder how much more can The Strokes give.

The album opens with the simply delightful "You Only Live Once", typical of all fans have expected from The Strokes. This is followed by the first single "Juice Box" which sees the band take on a heavier sound. Sadly, that's as good as The Strokes gets on this album. Songs like "Heart In A Cage" and "Vision Of Division" lack direction while one wishes there was more to the chorus of "Ask Me Anything" than "I've got nothing to say.." In fact, a majority of the songs sound like the band wrote them halfway and then simply ran out of ideas. That said, there are still some saving graces like "Razorblade", "On The Other Side" and "Ize Of The World" (check out the guitar solo in the middle) which reminds the listener that they are still capable of churning out a cool tune or two. Though the album offers more tracks than their previous two, sad to say, this won't save "First Impressions Of Earth" from being the most disappointing album from The Strokes yet.
- Reviewed by: addy

Rating: 6 (out of 10)

Tracklisting:
1. You Only Live Once
2. Juice Box
3. Heart In A Cage
4. Razor Blade
5. On The Other Side
6. Vision Of Division
7. Ask Me Anything
8. Electricityscape
9. Killing Lies
10. Fear Of Sleep
11. 15 Minutes
12. Ize Of The World
13. Evening Sun
14. Red Light

Available at: HMV, Gramophone and all major music retailers

Babyshambles - Down In Albion

After walking out on The Libertines, more was written about Pete Doherty and his drug addictions than about his music. His new band, Babyshambles suffered as a result making the news for postponed tours, cancelled gigs, assault and yet more drug busts. Now, if "Down In Albion" was any good, perhaps no one will care about all the bad press which preceded the album release.

Singles "Killamangiro" and "Fuck Forever" showed signs of early promise, with the latter surely being contender for one of the anthems of 2005. At his best, Doherty's songwriting and vocals are truly magical, but too often tracks which start out promisingly are allowed to drift into an untidy mess. With its fusion of reggae and punk, "Down In Albion" will probably split the opinions of fans and music lovers. But while it is easy to hate the man, Doherty, one thing undeniable is his songwriting ability when he is on form. Not exactly the masterpiece most people were anticipating but if Mr Doherty can keep himself clean and sober, we surely can expect greater things to come from Babyshambles.
- Reviewed by: addy

Rating: 7 (out of 10)

Tracklisting:
1. La Belle Et La Bete
2. Fuck Forever
3. A'rebours
4. The 32nd Of December
5. Pipedown
6. Sticks And Stones
7. Killamangiro
8. 8 Dead Boys
9. In Love With A Feeling
10. Pentonville
11. What Katy Did Next
12. Albion
13. Back From The Dead
14. Loyalty Song
15. Up The Morning
16. Merry Go Round

For samples: Click Here
Available at: HMV

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