Pitchfork

Don't call it a sophomore slump-- Keane were slouching from the get-go. Turns out the second verse doesn't sound much different than the first. What we get on Under the Iron Sea is nearly 60 minutes of mid-tempo AAA ROM (that's Adult Album Alternative Radiohead-Oriented Music), lots of piano, lots of measured drumming, lots of portentous clichés, earnest singing, and a sound big enough to fill a corporately-sponsored arena. It's the aural equivalent of these bon mots from Keane's first album: "I'm getting old and I need something to rely on." No alarms and no surprises here, folks.

There are some exceptions to Keane's particular rule: The Edge-y, attention-grabbing intro to "Is It Any Wonder", this album's barnburner (relatively speaking, of course). "Leaving So Soon" shows that Tom Chaplin can mimic his back-up vocal buddy Rufus Wainwright just as well as he can cling to Thom Yorke's jock. Speaking of good ol' Thom, if there's a more blatant nod to "Pyramid Song" than "Broken Toy", someone's lawyers are going to be very happy. As for the instrumental ("The Iron Sea") and the token ballad/show bathroom break ("Hamburg Song"), they're as turgid and narcoleptic as the all-too-regular stabs at willowy bombast. To Keane's credit, they're getting better at these stabs. Give your brain a well-earned siesta, and you'll probably find yourself doing the Patrick Bateman to toe-tapping ditties like "Put It Behind You" and "Crystal Ball".

But don't let all this talk about the music lead you to believe that the lyrical content is lacking. No, Keane make sure that Iron Sea is filled with the sort of greeting-card poetry that would even give Bono pause. If you want to sound like an asshole, quote this couplet from "Nothing In My Way"-- "For a lonely soul, you're having such a nice time." If you're feeling put-upon and a little obvious, just follow Chaplin's lead and sing, "I'm not a stone; I'm just a man," like you really mean it. And in case you forgot, "Atlantic" reminds you in the most ponderous manner possible that being old and alone is totally lame.

All this being said, Iron Sea isn't unlistenable. Would that it were, if just a little bit: Andy Green's rich, Corinthian production pulls out all the stops to make this a painfully pleasant experience. Some roughage mixed in with these hollow calories would go a long way towards being able to keep this disc down. No, Under the Iron Sea is just another exchange of the same perfunctory, self-centered pleasantries offered the first time around.