Customer Reviews

On the Outside (Chi)

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

...but coming from Starsailor, I was expecting something a little more complex. Not that I don't like "On The Outside," but for all intensive purposes this is straight-ahead, 4:4, three-chord rock album with some catchy hooks. Not that there's anything wrong with that, but after "Silence..." I was expecting something a little more complex, artistically speaking. This album just kinda....fills the void. It's a shame because I really like this band, but I think they're probably too constricted by their label right now to try anything really daring, thus we're given an album of pop songs. I'm really banking on something groundbreaking in a year or two, and I'll continue to follow this band until then.

There are a couple other reasons I gave this a 3 instead of a 4:

1) I bought the "import" version of this album which originated in Argentina, because where I live (Portland, Oregon, USA) Starsailor are all but unknown and the album has not been released here (yet?). Sadly, the copyright protection made it rather difficult for me to copy the album to my Rio, which is *perfectly legal.* Even worse, when you toss this CD into your computer's CD-rom, a 3rd party audio player launches and plays the album at radio quality. None of my standard audio players could decipher the copyright protection, so I was forced to listen to the album in raspy 128-bit mp3 quality. The audio player sucks, it's a piece of crap.

2) The vast majority of the songs on this album stick to the same 4-5 chords (I play guitar. Trust me, I know). This isn't a terrible thing, but it really slows down the progression of the album to the point where you wonder, "Did I just hear this song....oh no wait, this is a new song, but with the *exact* same sound."

Again, this is a decent album. I rarely give 5 stars, so a 3 star rating from me means "buy it," but don't expect the album to inspire you/lower your taxes/save money on car insurance. It's worth the XX dollars you pay for it!

Starsailor broke out in England and had massive success earlier this decade right around the same time as another melodic band from that country, Coldplay. But unlike Chris Martin and the boys, Starsailor's debut single stateside, Good Souls, failed to get as much play as Yellow and their follow up Silence Is Easy wise widely ignored here two years ago as another similar band Keane gain notoriety with Somewhere Only We Know. Now Starsailor is back to see if the third time is truly the charm with the release of On the Outside.

On the new album the band takes a decided harder sound, but instead of the crunching guitars or piano that Coldplay in known for, Starsailor instead assaults you with a wall of noise. Not coincidentally the inventor of the Wall of Sound, Phil Spector helmed their previous two albums, but wasn't around for this one. Instead the disk was produced by Rob Schnaph who has worked with the like of Beck and Elliot Smith. The one-two punch of In the Crossfire and Counterfeit Life come out you full force while lead singer James Welsh is found screaming at times which only builds the effect even more and isn't afraid to reach for notes throughout the album. The emotion in the music and the singing never lets down on the whole album which could be attributed to the record being record live in the studio.

But it's not all a melodic wall of noise, I Don't Know is a straight ahead rocker filtered through American blues that is reminiscent to mid-eighties U2. Get out While You Can goes from a haunting acoustic guitar and piano verse to a more melodic chorus and back again. Jeremiah is a slow moving acoustic song with a lyric, "And every time I see the sun go down I think of you," that can easily get stick in your head and is a great way to cap off the album (bonus track excluded). Speaking of the bonus track, Empty Streets, it is the closest song on the album that has the same melodic feel as previous works such as Good Souls.

There is anger in the lyrics that coincide with the harder sound whether it's love, "See that poor girl with the glint in her eye, she could turn you that way" (I Don't Know), political, "I don't see myself when I look at the flag. Thank God for that" (In the Crossfire), globalization, "A war for corporate glory re-told as a fairy story" (Counterfeit Life), and life itself, "Tired of living in this modern land, too many ideals to meet with its demands" (Faith Love Hope). On the Outside may be a step backwards in trying to get commercial success stateside, but it is a step in making better music.

First thing one notices while listening to On the ouside is the change in sound. It is definitely more agressive and carefully produced, without going to the extremes of their last album Silence is easy. But that is exactly where the issue lays. Here and there there are glimpses of the old trademark sound that had made Starsailor so dearly loved by fans and critics: that velvety voice and the simple guitar that can rip appart the toughest rock ("Jeremiah", "This time", "I don't know"). And then comes the crowd pleaser part: the worn out electric riff ("Keep us together")or the preachy chorus line that makes their social compromise look mediocre("Faith, hope, love"). James Walsh has said on interviews he was aiming to harmonize the clean vocals of Rufus Wainwright and Jeff Buckley with the rawness of Oasis. It achieves both, only after snatching a little too much of the Ghallager's pasty balladry. Overall this is a very solid album, sprinkled with the genius of a great lyricist, but somehow toned down by his attempt to follow his comrades in the charts. That's not Starsailor.

I got this import the first week it came out overseas. I am a HUGE fan of this band and upon listening to this, I feel they did a '3 Doors Down'. Let me explain. Not 3DD in the means of sound, I call it that because its interesting to listen to an album where you can picture every song on the soundtrack of an action movie. All the bases are covered, the soft pausing ballad, the heavy fight sequences, and the atonement tracks. Its all there.

All in all, its agood album. The band is still finding their sound, give it time. In the meanwhile, enjoy what they put out, because its definitely not bad.

I will be honest and say that I had never heard of Starsailor. I was hooked on the first play of this album and not many albums do this.
A must have to anyones collection just superb.

Good album so far! Only heard it twice but I was a big fan of their previously record! Can't wait to hear more!

if you are a fan of the mamby pamby Starsailor,this CD is not for you. if ,however,you are looking for one of the greatest albums of the CD era then you have hit the jackpot. the intensity level of almost every song grabs you and never lets go. they will never make an album this great.

Starsailor is first and foremost a band best experienced live. Audiences are drawn to the raw energy of the band, especially lead vocalist James Walsh. With their first two albums, it seemed difficult for the band to replicate the potency of their live performances. "Good Souls" from Starsailor's debut album Love is Here is a good example. This song, which ends each live performance is well-written and well-rendered on the album, but lacks the energy cum edginess immediately apparent when heard live.

On the Outside on the other hand, comes much closer to proffering the listener a sense of the live Starsailor. It has a raw, immediate feel to it, yet it does not forgo a tightness and flow that also marks their live appearances. Until Starsailor releases a live concert album, On the Outside is an excellent effort. Starsailor fans will see it as yet another step in their maturation as artists, and newcomers will receive a great introduction to the band.

Note: If you are unfamiliar with Starsailor, you might recognize the first track of On the Outside, "In the Crossfire." It has been getting airplay on alternative stations in the States, they performed it for their Tonight Show appearance last summer, and it was featured on the CBS television network promoting its Sunday night fall lineup. After their own tour in the States and Canada, Starsailor also supported James Blunt during a portion of his U.S. concert tour late in 2006. Just recently they opened for the Stones in Europe.

I got to say, with their 2 previous albums, Starsailor became one of the best British pop/rock bands around. This excellent album continues to catapult them onward to potential greatness. Though, its a long way off from being completely different from the previous 2 albums, Starsailor have "bulked up" a bit on this release with a more rocking sound. Electric guitars and faster tempos are more present here, examples as "In the crossfire", "Keep Us Together", and "Faith, Hope, and Love". The album is probably the most up-beat album yet. However, one of the best tracks on here may be the slowest and calmest of them all. The excellent acoustic "Jeremiah" is amazingly beautiful as well and haunting. There is nothing dramatically different from their previous albums. You're getting just want you've come to expect from this band: Well-written, catchy, melodic, under 5 minute pop/rock songs. Its hard to say if this album is their best so far, I don't think it beats out Love is Here, but its still VERY good. Basically, if you like Starsailor's previous stuff, there's absolutely no reason not to like this. Definitely recommended for fans of Travis, Coldplay, Keane, Richard Ashcroft, etc.

Warning: This disc does not play in Itunes or can be put on the Ipod easily. There are a number of cracks out there if you are interested. That said,This a more angtsy follow up from their last album. I listen to a lot of music and am surprised why Starsailor hasn't caught on in a big way,their music is an angtsy almost emotionally frantic essence of current britpop which is enjoying a good resurgence of late. Starsailor still persists with really hashed out guitar rock but some of the singles can be forwarded not having enough oomph to them though the lead singer certainly tries but he can do so much. Worth a listen. Though they aren't superstars by any measure you can easily see a potential in them to be the next Kasabian or Snow Patrol.