|
Amazon.co.uk allows you to pay for your items in your local currency. Restrictions apply. Learn More. |
Frequently Bought Together
Product details
|
Track Listings
| 1. 3 Times And You Lose |
| 2. Selfish Jean |
| 3. Closer |
| 4. Big Chair |
| 5. Battleships |
| 6. Eyes Wide Open |
| 7. My Eyes |
| 8. One Night |
| 9. Out In Space |
| 10. Colder |
| 11. New Amsterdam |
Product Description
Amazon.co.uk Review
The Boy with No Name, the fifth album by Scots alt-rockers Travis is their first offering since 2004's Singles. First impressions are of a band eager to break new ground – a positive sign given Travis haven't impressed for what feels like far too long. Opening track "3 Times and You Lose," gives the first sense of something more dynamic occurring within the band’s modus operandi - a feeling that's continued with the finger snapping side "Selfish Jean" (a clear echo of an old b-side) and the strangely upbeat, slightly minatory "Big Chair". The pared down lullabies on The Boy With No Name are good too: songs like "Out In Space," in particular show a more candid, open-minded side of the band. While it's not close to the golden glories of The Man Who or Good Feeling, The Boy With No Name is undoubtedly Travis's most diverse and enjoyable work in a while. --Danny McKenna
Review
Greatest Hits albums, by their nature, are often quickly dismissed. An easy way to make a few quid? A lazy way to round off a five-album deal? All of the above? Still, once out of the way, the benefits become apparent - an opportunity to wipe the proverbial slate clean and reinvent.
As their first studio offering after a singles compilation, The Boy With No Name is an album on which Travis can afford to take risks. Having no laurels left to rest on, it's time to explore. And while they might not travel too far in any one direction, they certainly cover a hell of a lot of ground.
Don't allow lead single ''Closer'' to lull you into a false sense of soothing tones and quiet confidence - it's by no means a representation of The Boy With No Name which may be, arguably, their most eclectic album to date.
''Selfish Jean'', for instance, is an upbeat display of gusto, dormant since the band's debut Good Feeling. And although the impish excitement is replaced by a more stable, mature brand of oomph, it's nonetheless a welcome return to a side of Travis that's seldom exposed.
Elsewhere, ''Big Chair'' continues a similarly uptempo sound, but with a considerably darker overtone. The brooding, studio-heavy intro could be lifted straight from a Linkin Park track, resultantly inducing blessed relief once Fran Healy's vocals materialize where watered-down rap would effortlessly sit.
At the other end of the spectrum, the striking, lager-tinged lullaby, ''Out In Space'', is a stripped-bare gem of acoustic honesty. Where each track acts as a pigeon step in its own given route away from the conventional Travis sound, ''Out In Space'' takes a hefty stride, and succeeds.
While the non-specific climate of The Boy With No Name provides a refreshing listen it's also its one negative characteristic. A cynic would call it inconsistent, yet at the same time it's too subtle for an optimist to call it diverse. Take it as a simple collection of adept songs, however, and there's very little to find fault with. --Al Fox
Find more music at the BBC This link will take you off Amazon in a new window
Tags Customers Associate with This Product(What's this?)Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
|
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
Having been lucky enough to watch Travis live in a smallish venue (Liverpool Carling Academy) about three years ago, I was extremely impressed with the energy, drive and tunefulness of the band. It left me looking forward to a new album, which ended up being a long time in the making - but here it is.
'Three Times And You Lose' is a great opening track, simultaneously catchy, jangly and moody. Then there's 'Selfish Jean', which nobody with an ounce of rhythm would fail to notice is a kick-ass tune, blazing a powerful, energetic trail with some fabulous lyrics (at university, there was a girl I had the misfortune of living with who labelled all of her food with her own name, so Fran's lyric of 'You keep your chocolate biscuits wired to a car alarm' really makes me smile).
'Closer' is a beautiful track, delicate and wistful, and there are plenty of other gems here too. 'My Eyes' has personal meaning for me as I've listened to it over the last few months, watching my baby son grow up - I can feel what Fran has written about, and the music itself is classic Travis. 'Battleships', with the falsetto vocal, could have failed if Fran didn't have enough power in his singing to pull it off; as it is, it is a gentle triumph.
The only criticism I have is that the album tends to get a bit safe and samey in the final tracks from 'Out In Space' through to 'New Amsterdam'. I've given it plenty of time and listening, but there isn't anything special enough about these songs to differentiate them from the crowd; they're OK, but not stunning. Given that the rest of the album is so good, it shows these songs up a little for me.
Nonetheless, these guys started a musical trend that has revitalised British music, with real bands playing real tunes with real instruments, and this album fits well within the musical genre. After the slightly incongruous 'Twelve Memories', which was a bit uneven in terms of musical quality, this is a grown-up Travis doing what they do best. If you like Travis, you've probably already got this CD, but if you haven't got it yet you're missing out on what will definitely be one of the best releases this year.
'Three Times And You Lose' is a great opening track, simultaneously catchy, jangly and moody. Then there's 'Selfish Jean', which nobody with an ounce of rhythm would fail to notice is a kick-ass tune, blazing a powerful, energetic trail with some fabulous lyrics (at university, there was a girl I had the misfortune of living with who labelled all of her food with her own name, so Fran's lyric of 'You keep your chocolate biscuits wired to a car alarm' really makes me smile).
'Closer' is a beautiful track, delicate and wistful, and there are plenty of other gems here too. 'My Eyes' has personal meaning for me as I've listened to it over the last few months, watching my baby son grow up - I can feel what Fran has written about, and the music itself is classic Travis. 'Battleships', with the falsetto vocal, could have failed if Fran didn't have enough power in his singing to pull it off; as it is, it is a gentle triumph.
The only criticism I have is that the album tends to get a bit safe and samey in the final tracks from 'Out In Space' through to 'New Amsterdam'. I've given it plenty of time and listening, but there isn't anything special enough about these songs to differentiate them from the crowd; they're OK, but not stunning. Given that the rest of the album is so good, it shows these songs up a little for me.
Nonetheless, these guys started a musical trend that has revitalised British music, with real bands playing real tunes with real instruments, and this album fits well within the musical genre. After the slightly incongruous 'Twelve Memories', which was a bit uneven in terms of musical quality, this is a grown-up Travis doing what they do best. If you like Travis, you've probably already got this CD, but if you haven't got it yet you're missing out on what will definitely be one of the best releases this year.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
These guys were written off in my books until I had the pleasure of seeing them at T in the Park a couple of years ago. Every song seemed much the same from their first four albums (the Petshop Boys syndrome) with the exception of some cracking songs like Driftwood and Sing. However Fran Healy is a rare outdoor festival commodity and can really get the crowd going. He and the rest of the band wanted to be there resulting in the crowd wanting to be there with them. He inspired me so much that I bought their latest album and on the first few listenings it's arguably their best album to date. Could it be that they are free of the pressure of the first 5 album contract and have had time to relax and enjoy writing music again?
This album has more depth than any of their previous offerings yet still has the familiar Travis feel. Closer, with its moving orchestral feel and Fan's voice at it's best, could nearly bring a man to tears. Big Chair starts off with a Linkin Park feel to it and has a lovely upbeat feel. Selfish Jean wouldn't be out of place as a Trainspotting theme with an Iggy Pop style intro. It's a gutsy number and will definitely get the crowds rocking at any future T in the Park performance.
An excellent album which fills me with excitement for a live performance and encouragement for their next album.
This album has more depth than any of their previous offerings yet still has the familiar Travis feel. Closer, with its moving orchestral feel and Fan's voice at it's best, could nearly bring a man to tears. Big Chair starts off with a Linkin Park feel to it and has a lovely upbeat feel. Selfish Jean wouldn't be out of place as a Trainspotting theme with an Iggy Pop style intro. It's a gutsy number and will definitely get the crowds rocking at any future T in the Park performance.
An excellent album which fills me with excitement for a live performance and encouragement for their next album.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
To be honest after such a long wait since the last album I was a little disappointed with this one as it seemed to have no guts, but I have to say that after a few more plays I am now hooked. Fran's voice is still amazing and sometimes verging on the angelic. I love the backing track and chorus to Closer it brought tears to my eyes for some unexplained reason. If you've ever seen Travis live it's a memorable experience as the boys interact so well with the crowd inviting everyone to sing along, people just seem to know all the words and enjoy themselves immensely.
Please, please Travis with the next album, give it some wellie!!
Please, please Travis with the next album, give it some wellie!!
Would you like to see more reviews about this item?
Were these reviews helpful?
Let us know
Most Recent Customer Reviews
CD of the ever good Travis
Cd album from Travis.
What can I say, another quality album from the scottish band!
Item received promtly and no issues.
What can I say, another quality album from the scottish band!
Item received promtly and no issues.
Published 14 months ago by Scottie
Quite Possibly Their Best?
I thought Travis were over the hill after 12 Memories - how wrong I was. This is an amazing album - beautiful melodic calming songs that Travis excell at. Read more
Published on 15 Dec 2009 by MDD
To say I love this album is an understatemt.
This album was a real return to form for travis. It is everything I love about them, and then some more on top. Read more
Published on 23 April 2009 by Charlie Downes
Decent ... but easily forgettable
The latest studio-based offering from Travis (who seeing the fortunes of rivals Take That improve also decided to jump on the come-back band wagon)offers a few happy go lucky songs... Read more
Published on 18 Jan 2008 by starg8
Are Travis getting old?
I think they are, and as such are slipping into the unfortunate pattern that bands that are getting old fall into. Read more
Published on 8 Oct 2007 by Robbie Swale
Their Best
As a reletively devoted fan, i think this is my favourite Travis album.
This is an LP that, while being devoid of the stand out tunes of yesteryear, has a beutiful... Read more
This is an LP that, while being devoid of the stand out tunes of yesteryear, has a beutiful... Read more
Published on 2 Oct 2007 by Mr. C. J. Coffey
Smooth !
It would be easy to dismiss this latest offering from Travis as yet another 'Indie-lite' product so beloved of our legion of easy listening guitar bands. Read more
Published on 13 Aug 2007 by Arthur Dooley
This IS rare quality ...
You know how it is. We get used to a few good tracks out of 10 by most known bands and think ourselves lucky if we can hum some of those in the shower. Read more
Published on 8 July 2007 by Listener
Surprise
The old adage that you look forward to an album and it disappoints and then one you think will be OK turns out to be a cracker. Read more
Published on 11 Jun 2007 by Steve Horsfall - Author / Writer
A great album, gets better each time you listen to it!
I agree with other reviews that this album has been a long time coming. I loved 'Closer' and the video is great! Read more
Published on 25 May 2007 by Mrs. Katie Austin
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
