Review: White Lies - Ritual

My first introduction to the London band White Lies was seeing them open for Kings of Leon in Birmingham Alabama in October of 2009. I had never heard of them but learned after their first song they had opened with their best song off their debut album To Lose My Life. The show sort of puttered out after that. That pretty much sums up the bulk of their catalog to date and this album is no different. Their sound encapsulates 80's synth and singer Harry McVeigh has a baritone that's more Chris Isaac than Robert Smith. It's too bad that his lyrics are often nonsensical and don't make any sense. Sometimes they are downright trite and, well...bad. The overall sound and production of this album is improved from their debut, and their musicianship has also improved as well. That being said I wouldn't say this album is better. If only every song were as big and aspired to soar and succeed as much as "Farewell To The Fairground", the very song they opened with and seemed to go downhill from. If that were the case they would have an initial catalog and a stable of memorable songs to build from. The song "Bigger Than Us" comes close but it's not something you haven't already heard done bigger and better many times over. If you've got a couple of bucks burning a hole in your pocket do pick up those two songs, the rest you can leave in your favorite respectable music store catalog. 2 out of 5