4 out of 5

Producer: Dave Eringa

Engineer: Bob Weston

Label: Parlophone / EMI

See how I put Bob Weston’s name up there?  Cute, I know.  I always thought he produced this album, but Allmusic has this Dave Eringa chap on there, so I guess that’s that.  Anyhow, I’m sure I’m supposed to like the later Idlewild albums over this one, because their sound “matures,” but this is the one I cue up most often, and the one that really gets me moving.  It’s a nice blend between their punkier side (which dominated their debut album) and the kind of emotional rock that initially lumped them in with Coldplay, at the time, but with less warbling than comes along with that – lead Roddy Woomble has a nice straight-forward vocal style that, even when doing a crooning thing, has a certain momentum behind it.

The album admittedly gets a little samey toward the end, and there’s not really a standout track (making stronger individual songs would come later).  It even concludes with an oh-so-typical slow song, but the good majority of these songs have a good punchy bassline and a nice rounded guitar sound that make for a uniquely undistorted grunge backing for the developing ideas of Mr. Woomble and crew.