| Bell X1 - Flock |
"He said, 'I wanna shine in the eye of Orion, but I drove my soul through the black hole,' She said, 'That's a wonderful way to wake me.'" These lyrics from "Rocky Took a Lover" manage to be both sincere and facetious, setting the tone for the rest of Flock, Bell X1's third album.
This Irish quartet formed from the ashes of Juniper, a band that endured the loss of former member Damien Rice. Slightly similar to pop-rock contemporaries Travis and early Snow Patrol, Bell X1 creates music that feeds the soul of sentimentalists everywhere, performing pretty ballads about love, complete with awkward first kiss moments, misunderstandings, and foolish yearnings. While the songwriting hasn't advanced beyond the band's previous album, Music in Mouth, there are a few noteworthy tracks to be discovered. "Reacharound" amounts to a chapter taken right out of the PJ Harvey/Thom Yorke school of hollow angst. The real treat is the reworking of the band's earlier, and undeniably beautiful track, "Eve, the apple of my eye." The sound is grander, the vocals are stronger, and the impact is lasting. - Honey S. Lapcharoen
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