An End Has A Start
by Editors
  • Record Label: Fader
  • Release Date: Jul 17, 2007
Metascore
65

Generally favorable reviews - based on 24 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 12 out of 24
  2. Mixed: 11 out of 24
  3. Negative: 1 out of 24
  1. Pitchfork
    49
    It's a shame that premature commercial success has sullied Editors' creativity, because An End contains its share of bright spots.
  2. PopMatters
    50
    An End Has a Start doesn’t have the glorious indie-disco hits of Editors’ debut, and its toned-down sheen leaves us wishing for more bite.
  3. New Musical Express (NME)
    60
    An End Has a Start turns out to be a pupae album--it's Editors stretching their sonic muscles, poking the first spindles of whatever new form they'll take out of their gloom-rock cocoon come album three.
  5. Rolling Stone
    50
    The songs get puffed and fluffed up but lose the wiry edge of "Munich," burying Chris Urbanowicz's guitar until it all sounds like Coldplay. Nice tunes, but louder, please.
  6. musicOMH.com
    60
    By producing a more polished, more accomplished sheen while The Killers have roughed themselves up and forgotten to shave, the two bands have moved towards a middle ground where they're virtually indistinguishable.
  7. Under The Radar
    60
    For all of its stadium aspirations and ggrand soundscapes, An End Has A Start runs together in a way The Back Room didn't. [Summer 2007, p.73]
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  8. Paste Magazine
    50
    These 10 songs repeatedly strike the same dynamic and evoke the same vague drama, each sounding more perfunctory--and more soulless--than the previous.
  9. Prefix Magazine
    60
    They are still too tied to their musical ancestors for any serious maturation to take place.
  10. Blender
    40
    Tom Smith's stentorian baritone, irritating in its overenunciated approximations of gravitas, is better suited to some community-theater group than a rock band.
  11. Dot Music
    50
    Occassionally, the songwriting does contain flashes of thoughtfulness.
  12. Urb
    50
    It appears they have emulated themselves on their sophomore (and sophomoric sounding) effort.

Awards & Rankings

64
#64 Most Discussed Album of 2007

User Reviews

All reviews »
User Score
7.9

Generally favorable reviews- based on 91 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 73 out of 91
  2. Mixed: 9 out of 91
  3. Negative: 9 out of 91
  1. DW.
    Sep 13, 2007
    10
    This is a great album and flows much better than The Back Room. The band is certainly maturing and writing better songs. An excellent live This is a great album and flows much better than The Back Room. The band is certainly maturing and writing better songs. An excellent live act as well. Love this new stuff.… Full Review »
  2. sandenos
    Jul 21, 2007
    8
    Excellent tunes. Rivals U2 for dishing up some champion stadium-filling anthems.Well done lads.
  3. TrekD
    Jul 18, 2007
    10
    Brilliant second album!
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