Feeder - Pushing the Senses (2005)

Pushing the Senses, Feeders fifth studio album builds on the introspective maturity that made Comfort in Sound a hit with both critics and record-buyers alike. Far removed from the upbeat power-pop of breakthrough Echo Park, Senses owes a greater debt to the sound of Americas mid-west, jumbled up with some quintessentially British song-writing.

"Tumble and Fall", the first single to be lifted, is an un-ashamed power-ballad. The words may be slightly ham-fisted ("tumble and fall, together we crawl"), but the melody catches so brilliantly that the actual lyrical content doesnt matter amidst the soulful verse and explosive chorus. This style of downbeat MOR with epic refrains continues throughout most of the album with only "Pilgrim Soul" forcing out any energy, the rest demonstrating the same quiet restraint that Grant has adopted for his vocals. Whilst the noise has been toned down from their days as festival stalwarts, the sound is still grand, almost stadium sized, but in a more considered and less sweaty way. The influences behind many of the songs seem to drift in then disappear again with echoes of REM ("Pushing the Senses"), Mercury Rev ("Frequency") and Belle & Sebastian ("Dove Grey Sands") making an impression without leaving a mark.

From the ten songs here its difficult to pick stand outs as the quality is un-wavering and the overall sound is very easy to listen to. If their last album was the sound of a band coming of age, Pushing the Senses is the sound of Feeder in the prime of life. --Georgina Collins