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- By date
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Aside from a single misstep (the title track, an instrumental that could serve as the too-ponderous theme for an art film about the rise and fall of Atlantis), the strings and things work well, adding density and drama.
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UrbThis time the band offers a variety of styles, from uptempo rockers to gorgeous ballads to move you. [Jun 2006, p.119]
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Q MagazineThis lack of reinvention... does not mean lack of invention. [Jul 2006, p.108]
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Despite the rousing music and the earnestness of Tom Chaplin's voice, Keane still sing passionately about not very much in particular.
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UncutIn truth, only an uncharitable curmudgeon could fail to appreciate Tim Rice-Oxley's vastly improved pop songwriting. [Jul 2006, p.102]
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An album to return to again and again, whose depth grows with every spin.
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Die-hard fans might rush to judge Under the Iron Sea as sounding a bit too much like U2.
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What they have done, to their credit, is take the best elements from those bands--Radiohead's soaring melodies, U2's scope and volume, Coldplay's dogged earnestness--and combine them into something that, for much of Under The Iron Sea's running time, is a perfectly respectable alternative to, say, the likes of Train or The Goo Goo Dolls or to Coldplay's comparatively bland X&Y.
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Even if Keane hasn't completely gone down with Under The Iron Sea, the band is merely treading water here.
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[Songwriter Tim] Rice-Oxley sells his gifts short too often by falling back on tritely positivist pap like "Put It Behind You" and "Try Again," and even Andy Green's electrifying production can't save pasty, interminable songs like "Crystal Ball," "Broken Toy," and (c'mon, now) "The Frog Prince."
Awards & Rankings
User score distribution:
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Positive: 110 out of 125
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Mixed: 11 out of 125
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Negative: 4 out of 125
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JorgePApr 22, 2007One of the best albums in history.
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May 26, 2018Incredible album. One of the best album of all time. Better than all Coldplay's albums
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Feb 26, 2017