Review: Keane "Night Train"

Loyal readers will know that I am a big fan of Keane's first two records - some of the finest piano-driven pop rock that has hit the scene in a long time. The new direction of their third outing, "Perfect Symmetry" left me cold (review here). Unfortunately on their latest, "Night Train", they veer even further from their roots and into a terrain that I am not willing to follow anymore.

Not all of "Night Train" is off the track, though. "Back In Time" and "Clear Skies" are pleasant tunes, with breezy acoustic guitar accompanying a more or less classic Keane arrangement. "My Shadow" also has an understated beauty in its simplicity, but remains a far cry from what Keane did on their first two records. Sadly, the rest of the songs polluting this release are catastrophic. "Looking Back" and "Stop For A Minute" are plagued with hip-hop influence from Somali/Canadian rapper K'Naan. The band has also gone overboard with their incorporation of dated 80s synth and drum sounds - what happened to the soaring piano melodies we fell in love with? "Ishin Denshin (You've Got To Help Yourself)" is a complete embarrassment, sounding like a track even Erasure would pass on, and it serves as as clear example of how far Keane has strayed from their senses.

The new CD was dubbed "Night Train" because the rails were Keane's favorite mode of transportation during the "Perfect Symmetry" tour, but this is one train that should have never left the station.

iPOD-worthy: 2, 4

Keane on MySpace. Official site.

Review: Keane "Perfect Symmetry"

With eager anticipation, I downloaded this new Keane release last week. It has been incubating with me for quite some time now, but still is not growing on me as much as I'd hoped. I am a big fan of the previous two releases, and the main problem I believe I am having with "Perfect Symmetry" is that it does not sound like Keane.

I have no problem with bands wanting to experiment and try something new, but the direction Keane has gone with this one is not pleasing to my ears. This does not even sound remotely like a Keane record until we get well into the second half...only then do the soaring vocals and piano-driven melodies that we expect come into play. The first track and single, "Spiralling" is a surprising jolt of irritating synth effects and 80s dance grooves. I almost thought Amazon screwed up with the download and gave me an old track from E.M.F. The 80s vibe continues with the next track, "The Lovers Are Losing", which has shadows of The Pet Shop Boys. "Better Than This" is goofy and all over the place, trying to mesh banjo, hand claps, synths, U2-esque backing chants, and a falsetto lead vocal.

After all this unorthodox stuff, Keane gets back to basics by track 5, the title track. Unfortunately, it sounds more like a b-side of "Hopes and Fears" to me. Much better are "You Don't See Me", "Again and Again", and "Pretend That You're Alone". And while the synth in "Black Burning Heart" almost sounds like it came from a John Cusack 80s movie soundtrack (especially "Better Off Dead"), the song is one of the standouts tracks for me. The epic "Playing Along" is also notable, in which the band interweaves noisy choruses with soft and subtle versus, to match the lyric, "I'm going to turn up the volume till I can't even think."

Kudos to Keane for trying to explore new musical possibilities...some are going to love it, but it is not my taste. I will proceed with caution before blindly purchasing the next release from this band.

iPOD-worthy: 6, 7, 9, 10

Keane on MySpace. Official site.

Here is the music video for "Spiralling":

Hot deal - Keane "Perfect Symmetry" - $2.99

This is not a typo...you can download the new release from Keane, "Perfect Symmetry" in its entirety for just $2.99 right now at Amazon.com. I have not reviewed it yet, but based on their past two releases, you can't go wrong with Keane. Especially for just $2.99!