shop | mailing lists
musicOMH
music: album reviews
Metro Station - Metro Station
(Columbia) UK release date: 30 March 2009
2 stars
Metro Station - Metro Station

buy this title


track listing

1. Seventeen Forever
2. Control
3. Kelsey
4. Shake It
5. Wish We Were Older
6. Now That We're Done
7. True To Me
8. Tell Me What To Do
9. California
10. Disco
11. Comin' Around
12. Shake It (The Lindbergh Palace Remix)

related
ALBUM:
Metro Station - Metro Station

external
Metro Station


If you can't get enough of the Cyrus family (Billy Ray, Miley...), don't fret. Metro Station have Trace Cyrus, elder brother of Miley, she of Hannah Montana fame, in their übercool pop band. Not only that, they also sport Mason Musso, elder brother of Mitchel Musso. He was also in Hannah Montana. Their saccharine-sweet output has been made to get tweens near you grooving.

But groove, as Deeelite so rightly once said, is in the heart. Well, the Cyrus family don't make our achy brakey hearts feel at all groovy. This eponymous album's opening track Seventeen Forever is the song that got Metro Station noticed on Myspace and, for about 10 seconds, it sounds quite promising in the groove stakes. But then a truth dawns; it is just a poor pastiche of electropop. So poor it makes you want to hit your head against the nearest wall.

Soon it's clear that Metro Station can't decide if they're a rock boyband or all about cheesy electro fabulousness. The clash of ideas, laudable in ambitious scope, makes for a confusing and rather jarring listen. The next track Control is little better; mediocre songwriting-by-numbers with little individual flair.

It's unsurprising that their singles Kelsey and Shake It, both featured here, failed to make much impact on this side of the pond when they were first released in 2007; both are massively dull. The repetitive chorus "Shake Shake Shake Shake Shake It" may well make you want to shake their necks. Cyrus' and Musso's vocals sound like they're inspired by Blink 182; trying to copy a successful template. They even brought in Blake Healy from Synthetic Joy. It's a shame he put his name to this dross.

As the album progresses the songs get only marginally better, leaving the impression of an album so dull it doesn't even have the decency to be awful. If you like the idea of an outwardly edgier Busted then you may enjoy these tunes. Otherwise, flee screaming to the hills before Hannah Montana-loving tweens give you lectures on how old you are. Metro Station didn't have much success when they first released their album in 2007, and there's no good musical reason why they should be big now.

  share: 
Facebook | Digg | del.icio.us | more
Mercury Prize 2009 nominees
FLORENCE AND THE MACHINE SPEECH DEBELLE KASABIAN FRIENDLY FIRES
LA ROUX BAT FOR LASHES THE HORRORS GLASVEGAS
SWEET BILLY PILGRIM THE INVISIBLE LISA HANNIGAN LED BIB

top albums
most read reviews in the last seven days
Biffy Clyro
Biffy Clyro


Julian Casablancas
Julian Casablancas


Martha Wainwright
Martha Wainwright


Jamie Cullum
Jamie Cullum
recommended reading
GIG REVIEW
Beyoncé brings her alter ego Sasha Fierce - and Jay-Z and Kanye West - to London
ALBUM REVIEWS out this week
tUnE-yArDs, Norah Jones, Will Young, Mariah Carey, Stereophonics
INTERVIEW
Martha Wainwright on her Edith Piaf album Sans Fusils, Ni Souliers, a Paris.
more album reviews
out this week:
tUnE-yArDs - BiRd-BrAiNs Norah Jones - The Fall Will Young - The Hits
Ebony Bones - Bone Of My Bones Mariah Carey - Memoirs Of An Imperfect Angel Them Crooked Vultures - Them Crooked Vultures
coming soon:
Gabby Young And Other Animals - We're All In This Together Rihanna - Rated R Codeine Velvet Club - Codeine Velvet Club
recent releases:
Shirley Bassey - The Performance Martha Wainwright - Sans Fusils, Ni Souliers, a Paris Biffy Clyro - Only Revolutions
Robbie Williams - Reality Killed The Video Star Pascal Babare - Thunderclap Spring Joe Goddard - Harvest Festival
Jamie Cullum - The Pursuit Nirvana - Live At Reading (Deluxe Edition) Nirvana - Bleach (20th Anniversary Edition)
Julian Casablancas - Phrazes For The Young The Hidden Cameras - Origin: Orphan Weezer - Raditude
Cheryl Cole - Three Words Kings Of Convenience - Declaration Of Dependence Portico Quartet - Isla
The Antlers - Hospice Fuck Buttons - Tarot Sport The Flaming Lips - Embryonic
more album reviews
Twitter


recent interviews and features
Martha Wainwright
Martha Wainwright
INTERVIEW
Gary Numan
Gary Numan
INTERVIEW
Miike Snow
Miike Snow
INTERVIEW
The Big Pink
The Big Pink
INTERVIEW
more interviews

  more album reviews...



musicOMH
about us
contact
copyright
home
elsewhere
Twitter
Facebook
Last.fm
Soundcloud
MySpace
© 1999-2009 OMH