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. AllMusic
    70
    This is a decent album; it bears a craftsman-like solidity and many fans will no doubt be satisfied (and, more than that, happy) with it. But An End Has a Start is simply not the best album Editors are capable of putting together.
  2. Billboard
    80
    Tom Smith's emotive vocals and the dense wall of guitars strike the perfect balance between moody, underground noise and more accessible, arena-bound rock.
  3. Boston Globe
    80
    The band's sophomore disc, which teems with drama and dark dollops of piano that swarm beautifully around singer-guitarist Tom Smith's clarion-call voice, continues to make good on the hype while again drawing on the past.
  5. Drowned In Sound
    80
    An End Has a Start actually sounds like it was crafted as ten quite individual chapters of a long-running saga; surprisingly, though, it ultimately works better than its predecessor as a cohesive, flowing album.
  6. Entertainment Weekly
    75
    We'll give the Editors the benefit of the doubt, thanks to majestic jems like 'Smokers Outside the Hospital Dooros' and the existential title track.
    All this publication's reviews
  7. Hot Press
    70
    In places An End Has a Start is bleakly compelling; nevertheless, great swathes of the record strain towards a pasty arena-rock future.
  8. Playlouder
    100
    This album is fucking brilliant – it made me want to cut my hair, paint the ceiling, fuck the postman and burn the disco down. So I did. Then I curled up in a corner, cried, and shat myself.
  9. Spin
    70
    Editors have acquired a sense of urgency and emotion they lacked on "The Back Room." [Aug 2007, p.98]
    All this publication's reviews
  10. The A.V. Club
    83
    With albums as strong as An End Has A Start, Editors may get the last laugh.
  11. The Boston Phoenix
    75
    It's nice to be reminded that the world is shit and we're all gonna die. Editors have mastered the form.
  12. The Guardian
    80
    Singer Tom Smith tempers his constant anxiety with flashes of optimism, his brittle nihilism with gooey sentiment.
  13. Uncut
    80
    Avoiding the ponderous repetition that dragged down songs like “Bullets” on the first record, they concoct a gentler, dreamier atmosphere with less apparent anxiety, and create a shadowy veil of sadness, shot through with hopeful transcendence.

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!
See all user reviews »