Big Echo

Album titles can often sum up the albums themselves. Case in point: the Morning Benders' 2008 debut, Talking Through Tin Cans, a collection of boilerplate indie rock that borrowed more than a bit from the Shins' jangle pop. Despite a few bright spots, the record branded the San Franciscan outfit with a second-tier reputation. Add that to the fact that the Shins aren't groundbreakers themselves, and Talking Through Tin Cans begins to sound as limited as the rudimentary children's activity suggested in its title.

Full Review | More Reviews from Publication | Top Rated of 2010

This second album marks a huge step forward for The Morning Benders following their 2008 debut Talking Through Tin Cans. That record was largely forgettable; its straight-forward approach to American indie-rock the sound of a band that lacked scope in ambition and song-writing, sounding five years out of date even at the time of its release. It was enough, in all honesty, to make this reviewer almost write them off forever. Yet thankfully, bearing in mind the changes that have been made to their sound on Big Echo, it seems that the band may also have been concerned by this lack of scope too.

Full Review | More Reviews from Publication | Top Rated of 2010