Rating: 5 of 5 stars
If you’ll remember my praise, a few weeks ago, of Okkervil River’s latest album — it was a lot of very pretentious lines about the moralism of music, subjectivism, objectivism and the MSM’s hatred of all things straightforward — in short, the importance of soul — or otherwise a plethora of goosh.
“A Hundred Million Suns” by Snow Patrol might be one of the most honest, straightforward, and consistent albums of the year. I wouldn’t even hesitate in positing that Snow Patrol might be one of the most consistent bands of all time. After a decade of success, one might expect the blade to dull, so to speak. Nevertheless, Gary Lightbody is obviously having as much fun as he did when he first stepped on stage in Dundee. It shows.
I’ve often wrested these reviews from the ether with much difficulty — stringing together verbs and indirect objects in relation to the subject, in order to convince you, dear reader, that an album has some certain quality. However, this album allowed me one convenience that I had sorely missed. To write one true sentence about a song I really enjoy.
A chanting piano with a touch of The Postal Service, “Crack the Shutters,” starts with an irreproachable hook and follows through to become one of my Top5 “Track One, Side One” ‘s, easy. Lightbody’s cool restraint is like the other side of a pillow. Comforting. Addicting even.
You cool your bedwarm hands down
on the broken radiator
And when you lay them freezing on me
I mumble can you wake me later
But I don’t really want you to stop
And you know it so it doesn’t stop you
And later …
Crack the shutters open wide
I want to bathe you in the light of day
And just watch you as the rays
Tangle up around your face and body
I could sit for hours
Finding new ways to be awed each minute
Cause the daylight seems to want you
Just as much as I want you
That is all you need to know.
