Travis

Travis: Back on song or AOR bores?

Ode to J Smith

Initially, Travis were indie darlings, a band who could do little wrong.

Quite when they got lumped into the James Blunt mould as AOR bores is unclear but this is a band who, some might say, is in desperate need of reinvention.

The boys themselves possibly agree because Ode To J Smith, if not the ‘loudest and edgiest yet’ – as they hinted pre-release – is certainly the closest thing to ‘original’ Travis.

Recorded over just two weeks, this is the band’s rockiest effort for some years and that shortened timescale seems to have done some good. Gone is the over-produced whimsy and, in its place, come experimentation and energy. Sometimes it doesn’t work but, for the most part, Ode to J Smith is a highly successful project.

Lead singer Fran Healy’s voice is as wistful as ever and it occasionally feels incongruous alongside the balls-out rocking and sub-Nirvana riffs. However, it also helps to soften the mood, allowing the lyrics equal space to the hooks and raucous chords. There are moments that feel derivative, particularly the Gimme Shelter-esque opening to Friends, and Something Anything’s Oasis-lite air but, for the most part, this is a definite return to form.

They say: ‘… one seeks the comfort of how guitar bands sounded before then, the bristling energy recalling early REM, the Chills and even occasionally Nirvana.’ The Guardian.

We say: Written Travis off as namby-pamby acoustic balladeers? Think again.

Best track: Last Words, sort-of title track J. Smith.

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