What separates it from greatness is that even after repeated listens, it simply doesn’t tell you who Dan Smith is.
A debut that’s as infectious as it is dramatically powerful.
Here is an artist who may be young, but has already got a firm handle on his craft.
Dan Smith has released more properly catchy songs on this one record than some bands manage in a lifetime
Delusions of cultdom still surface on their debut (most obviously on the Twin Peaks-referencing Sarah Palmer) but overall, it is a hooky, unmistakably populist affair.
‘Bad Blood’ comes out with about as much identity as a Facebook commenter without a profile picture.
There’s nothing inherently wrong with this too-many-feelings, heart-on-your-sleeve approach; it’s just that, played out over the course of an entire album (or on the airwaves, over the course of several years), the whole thing starts to feel a bit contrived.
It's hard to work out why these songs have made a greater connection than those of a hundred like-minded songwriters.
but if you close your eyes, does it almost seem like nothing's changed at all?
I'm surprised how good this was
This isn't my favorite Bastille album, but this is all killer, no filler. Daniel in the Den might be their best song too.
1 | Pompeii 3:34 | 90 |
2 | Things We Lost in the Fire 4:00 | 83 |
3 | Bad Blood 3:32 | 79 |
4 | Overjoyed 3:26 | 71 |
5 | These Streets 2:55 | 71 |
6 | Weight of Living, Pt. 2 2:54 | 78 |
7 | Icarus 3:45 | 84 |
8 | Oblivion 3:16 | 79 |
9 | Flaws 3:38 | 78 |
10 | Daniel in the Den 3:08 | 82 |
11 | Laura Palmer 3:06 | 81 |
12 | Get Home 3:11 | 73 |
#8 | / | Amazon |
#23 | / | PopMatters |
#48 | / | Gigwise |