An End Has A Start

Much seems to have been made recently in various media about the doom and gloom aspect and deathly nature of Editors songs. But this is hardly Laughing Len territory and the mood of the lyrics is lifted by the soaring music. So don't let some of the media put you off.
The new album takes over where the first one left off so fans of the first album are on familiar ground straight away. This album appears woefully short at ten tracks and forty minutes as the quality of the songs means it just whizzes by. Make no mistake this is a cracking album.
So often when you look forward to a second album it's either a massive disappointment (come in Wire Daisies) or just a warmed up rehash of the first, not this one.
It's similar to the first album but the songs are better and more diverse, the little hooks still there, the voice better and the use of instruments slightly more varied to give the songs a different feel.
I'm loath to single out any tracks but The Racing Rats and Weight of the World are immediately incredible and worth the price of the album alone.
My one and only criticism is the sound quality. It has way far too much of a compressed feel about it which is a shame as you feel this music needs room to breath and soar. Unfortunately this is not the album to sparkle on your hi-fi. However even poor mastering (?) can't diminish the quality of Editors.
The excellent Arcade Fire seem to be the hot (no pun intended) band of the moment, but I'm listening to Editors more often at the moment.

As Editors are one of my favourite bands,many people could misconstrue this review as slightly biased.I'm going to be impartial however.

In short this album is utterly fantastic and as the title of this review bluntly states-a masterpiece.Quite simply there's not a bad track on it.It's true that it doesn't deviate too much from the sounds of dark indie rock from their first album but for anyone who has heard 'The Back Room' are you surprised? That was magnificent in it's own right and although Editors have attracted criticism for not changing their style completely like other bands such as the excellent Killers,this doesn't make A End Has A Start any less of an album.

So,stand out tracks? Obviously their single,Smokers Outside Hospital Doors is already a huge hit and it's brooding vocals by Tom Smith and reflective sounds set a trend for the rest of this album. The Racing Rats is a forceful track which never lets up,not unlike Bullets from their first album and it's followed up by other fantastic tracks such as Weight Of The World,title track, An End Has A Start and Bones. Escape The Nest seems to be an obvious release for a single with more pumping guitars and forceful lyrics but the album also displays a more sensitive side with Spiders and more significantly the last track on the album-Well Worn Hand. My biase might start to display itself here but this song really displays the brilliance of Tom Smith.Little over 2 minutes long,it simply involves a guitar,piano and Smith's crooning and thoughtful vocals and despite the lack of instruments remains highly effective and possibly the best song on the album.However, that would be debatable as there are 9 other contenders for that very commendable accolade.

So,to conclude,A End Has A Start is easily one of the best albums released this year.£9.99 is a small price to pay for such obvious quality and all thats left to say is roll on a third album!

The Editors are truly fantastic, I didn't expect after such a fantastic first album (The Back Room), they could bring out another album thats actually even better.
This album is pretty much on my stereo constantly, there's so many great songs on here, the best one is the title track, "An End Has A Start", as well as "Bones", and "Racing Rats".

In a sea of generic, and un-unique indie bands, the Editors manage to once again break the mould with their second album 'An End Has A Start'.

Compared to their debut 'The Back Room', it is clear that the band has progressed positively within the last two years of little to no news as to the prospects of a new album, but the silence was worth it!

With an excellent opening track, and their single 'Smokers Outside The Hospital Doors', you are instantly thrusted into that sense of deep thought and happiness that the Editors were infamous for. Each song maintains quality that you would want to expect from any band. Compared to the other indie bands around today, the Editors really stand out from the rest, with the use of more keyboard, and bass notes, rather than making sole use of the guitar.

If you haven't heard their album 'The Back Room', 'An End Has A Start' will certainly impress and entertain you. It is clearly their best album out of the two, but it still goes without saying that their debut was a masterpiece in its own right. I highly recommend this album to any indie lovers, hell, any music lovers out there!

After enjoying the first album and being disappointed with a live performance at Brixton Academy, I was dubious about this offering. Having heard it, it ranks as possibly the best release of the year. from start to finish it enthralls with epic, heartfelt compositions and on the whole probably offers more in the way of ingenuity and presence than 'The Back Room'. Stand out tracks include 'smokers outside the hospital doors', 'an end has a start' and the supremely powerful 'escape the nest.' To be fair though, it all stands out as an extremely mature and intense album.