July 17, 2006 by A.S. Van Dorston

It’s hard to tell which is worse for a young British band trying to make an impact in the U.S. —being overhyped and then given a savage critical beatdown, or just being ignored. Razorlight pretty much got the worst of everything with no hype, and then were ignored. In the UK, Up All Night (2004) garnered solidly positive reviews, nothing hysterical, and then quietly sold a million copies in Europe. It was a great, if not groundbreaking, album of youthful passion and an homage to Patti Smith, the Voidoids and even Bruce Springsteen. The Yanks weren’t having any of it, and bludgeoned it “til hardly a quiver was left. I suspect some people are holding a personal vendetta against Johnny Borrell who reportedly has quite a mouth on him, boasting he’s better than Dylan during his first album. Guess I had to be there, but Dylan’s first album really wasn’t all that great, so what’s the big whoop?

At any rate, the axes were sharpened even before the new album was released. Q declared Razorlight a timeless classic which is a bit hyperbolic. Stylus burned and buried it like it was toxic waste, which was pretty amusing. The lead-off single, “In The Morning” is very upbeat, poppy tune that’s good enough to generate plenty of anticipation. “Who Needs Love” maintains the intrigue with another departure, spare, piano-driven Motown-style soul that reminds me of Crowded House. “Hold On” continues the spare rhythm. It’s a good tune, but I slowly realize what’s wrong. It doesn’t rock. At all. Razorlight lost their original drummer who went bananas all over Up All Night, and they’ve downgraded to mere time-keeping. “America” is truly horrid, with cringe-inducing lyrics and a saccharine melody. From there it’s a shaky, uphill recovery, with “Pop Song 2006” and “Kirby’s House” making up for that disastrous ballad. Overall it’s not a bad little pop album. But what made Razorlight special, the rock energy and sloppy romanticism and passion, are fading memories.