Starsailor: Love is Here : Music Reviews : Rolling Stone

Album Reviews

Starsailor are the u.k. equivalent of the Goo Goo Dolls. On their debut album, this Northern England foursome shows a flair for melodramatic modern rock that the Goos needed a decade to get right. The band's approach is decidedly British, balancing fey shoegazer misery and sunny acoustic-guitar strumming. Frontman James Walsh's singing isn't as arresting as Thom Yorke's, but he uses a similar willowy-falsetto quality to great effect on songs such as "Way to Fall" and "Lullaby." It's a shame his vocals invite close listening, because the lyrics tend to be pretty silly, full of mock profundities like "Don't you know you've got your daddy's eyes/And Daddy was an alcoholic." A spooky bass line makes "Tie Up My Hands" delightfully sinister, and jazzy keyboard parts spice up "Poor Misguided Fool." That song, as well as "Good Souls" and "Fever," justifies the hype that surrounds Starsailor in the U.K.; they make up for their schmaltziness by having irresistible, expansive melodies worthy of, say, the Goo Goo Dolls' "Iris." You may well like Love Is Here, but it could take a while before you admit it to yourself.

JENNY ELISCU
(RS 887 - January 17, 2002)