The Back Room

1	Lights 2:32
2	Munich 3:46
3	Blood 3:29
4	Fall 5:06
5	All Sparks 3:33
6	Camera 5:02
7	Fingers in the Factories 4:14
8	Bullets 3:09
9	Someone Says 3:13
10	Open Your Arms 6:00
11	Distance 3:38

Barnes & Noble

Call it post-punk twice removed. Five years ago, New York scenesters Interpol landed, borrowing more than a little from the stark sounds of Joy Division, Echo & the Bunnymen, and the Chameleons. Now we have Editors stealing the sound back to England (their hometown of Bristol, specifically). With eyes closed, a listener could be easily persuaded that The Back Room was, in fact, a new Interpol album. All the elements are there: icy but dramatic vocals; stabbing, echoing guitar lines; and Teutonic drumming. This would all be a bit shameless if Editors weren't so good at it. Songs like "Munich," "Blood," and "Bullets" are nearly flawless singles, and the rest of the album holds its own against them. Frontman Tom Smith is an assured singer, his voice bringing warmth to the band's otherwise chilly exterior, and on repeated listens, the comparisons fade. If there is a complaint to be lodged at The Back Room it is not that the songs sound too much like other bands' material, as much as they sound like one another. Some choruses are almost interchangeable, and nearly all the songs barrel out at the same breakneck speed -- only "Camera" dares to slow things down. This is more a worry for a third album than a debut, however; it will be interesting to see where Editors go next. Bill Pearis

All Music Guide

Before issuing their debut, The Back Room, in August 2005, Editors were immediately compared to the dark, brooding sounds of Interpol as well as the post-punk brashness of Echo & the Bunnymen. Singles such as "Blood" and "Bullets" quickly put Editors in the elite crowd of those to watch that year. The band -- Tom Smith (vocals/guitar), Chris Urbanowicz (guitar), Russell Leetch (bass), and Ed Lay (drums) -- compose a tight rock sound that's both raw and defined, particularly on album opener "Lights." Editors are an anxious, frantic, and passionate group, and the album is done with taste from the start. Smith is vocally passionate without being too steely, unlike Interpol frontman Paul Banks, as he exclaims, "I've got a million things to say," while his bandmates add to the song's rushing intensity. From there, the blistering "Munich" and the more luxurious, danceable "Blood" are the standout moments of this 11-song set. "Munich" is one of The Back Room's especially stylish numbers, thanks to the matching guitar work of both Smith and Urbanowicz. The surging storm that is "Bullets" is further proof that from the first note, The Back Room lunges at you with a dynamic that's fierce, wiry, and slightly fashionable. Alternative rock hasn't seen anything like this since the release of Turn on the Bright Lights. MacKenzie Wilson