Like many others, I first heard Keane's single "Somewhere Only We Know" on the radio four years ago and I was hooked. The song wasn't nearly as mature or well-developed as some of Coldplay's music from the same time (like "Politik", "Warning Sign" or even "The Scientist"), but I heard some real potential (ignoring some critics who dismissed Keane as mere Coldplay-imitators). This potential I believe is fully realized in their latest album Perfect Symmetry (released October 14th). It is the next phase in their evolution since Hopes and Fears and Under the Iron Sea and is no longer likely to be confused with aforementioned English rockers.
Songs like "Spiralling" and "Better Than This" are both immediately accessible and musically complex and surprising. The vocals are especially fun (if you like the unexpected as much as me) - some oddly enough remind me of Freddie Mercury, I'm not really sure why... I think in the past, Keane's slow songs have had a hard time catching on with the public (like "She Has No Time" or "A Bad Dream" - both songs I enjoy, but they're easily lost with other nondescript titles like "Try Again", "Sunshine" or "Bedshaped"). Though the song titles may still leave room for improvement, the music plays to the band's strengths with clever, moderate-to-quick tempoed songs that are marvelously long (most of the tracks break 4 minutes). My vote for the highlights are "Time To Go", "Perfect Symmetry", "Again and Again" and "Spiralling", but this really is one of those albums where you should just buy the whole album if you're a Keane fan (or if you're not, there's no better time to become one).
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