Travis Album
Review: Travis/Singles

The Men Who Shouldn""8217"t

You know you""8217"re only a tin of biscuits and a bottle of brandy
away from Christmas when you hear bands releasing their best of""8217"s
or greatest hits. Maybe that""8217"s why I""8217"m so pessimistic about
these so"called albums. They represent all that is bad about the music
industry. 16 songs you already have plus 3 brand new songs "all of which
are so shit they couldn""8217"t be bothered keeping them for their next
studio album"" perfectly represented and packaged for only "euro"20.99
at a time of the year when a lot of music lovers don""8217"t exactly
have "euro"20.99"

Which made it all the more painful when I realised a band that I have
grown to love "and hate sometimes" decided it was time to cash in and
join the likes of Placebo" Neil Young" Robbie Williams and Pearl Jam
this Christmas in reminded people of their back catalogue of ""8220"hits""8221".
Oh Travis" why" why" why"

I know they""8217"re last outing" the forgettable 12 Memories" wasn""8217"t
a success" but do these 4 former Glasgow art students really need the
money"" I mean" surely they can afford enough battered Mars bars for
all their friends and families back home"""

What""8217"s most annoying" and this is from a fan""8217"s perspective"
is that this album not only highlights just how good Travis can sound"
but also how bad and uninspiring they can be at times.

Take the songs from their debut album" 1997""8217"s Good
Feeling. All I Wanna Do Is Rock is a roaring" aggressive statement
of intent" More Than Us starts off with a gentle guitar line and ends
as a soaring ballad" sweeping along with glorious strings in the background.
But then there""8217"s the awful U16 Girls and the silly Happy. The
former having the chorus of ""8220"Nananananana..""8221"
while the latter""8217"s chant goes something like ""8220"I""8217"m
so happy coz you""8217"re so happy""8221"" last heard by Scottish football
fans at Hampden Park when they actually won a game.

The true peaks of the album are of course from The Man Who. And I""8217"m
not talking about the annoying Why Does It Always Rain On Me"" but the
heartfelt Writing To Reach You and Driftwood.
Both songs perfectly portraying singer Fran Healy""8217"s uncertainty
and vulnerability""8230"""8220"Because my inside is outside" and my
right side""8217"s on the left side""8221".
There are other songs" which deserve a mention too. Banjo led Sing will
have the listener tapping their feet" while Side is a stadium rock anthem
with Lennon"esque lyrics.

Everything else is all a bit too forgettable. Coming Around is" well"
ok" and I suppose Turn isn""8217"t bad either but then there""8217"s
the godawful Flowers In The Window and about 6 songs from the last couple
of years" NONE" of which you""8217"ll probably know.

So" unless you""8217"re a complete fanatic or you""8217"re over 30 and
looking for a middle of the road album for you""8217"re car stereo"
do not buy this album.
I""8217"d never begrudge a band that has made a successful career out
of music they love" the chance to release an album of singles to look
back on. But considering it took U2 20 years to release a best of" REM
only released theirs last year" and Oasis and Radiohead are showing
no signs of such albums" I think that these 4 wee Scottish lads should
take a look at themselves and ask is this really an appropriate album.

I don""8217"t think so.

Rating: 6/10.