1x*****,2x****
After revisiting I'm sorry to say this album is even crappier than when I first heard it. That said, "You're All I Have"**** starts promisingly enough, with a slight edge that differentiates Snow Patrol from Coldplay. "Hands Open" is a bit more rocking, but geez, 'put Sufjan Stevens on', name dropping tools. And does every song have to sound like it follows some big couple fight in a chick flick? Every song is strictly verse/chorus/verse and ends rather abruptly, like basic tracks were written and recorded in 5 minutes, while overdubs were finagled in the studio for months. "Chasing Cars"***** I can't fault for the perfect confluence of big chorus and melody. And even with some really twee keyboard "You Could Be Happy"**** is pretty in its simplicity. But rock songs like "It's Beginning To Get To Me" and "Headlights On Dark Roads" (for once I wanna be the car crash not always just the traffic jam, what??) don't hold up with formula structures and lame lyrics. Another single "Shut Your Eyes" is one of those mid-tempo bobbers that always bore me. "Make This Go On Forever" and "Set Fire to The Third Bar" are the hyper-dramatic rain-scene ballads, and the 'big finish' title song eventually drags out to nearly two minutes of Michael Kamen-esque orchestral rock that plays so well at award shows. This is one of those harrowing experiences that makes one need to go back to the previous album and see if your assessment of that one was really that far off.
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