CD-Charts Position 1
Average Rating:

Cast of Thousands

by: Elbow

Release Date January 27, 2004
No sophomore slump for Elbow. Gracefully, they expand their repertoire without repeating themselves, defining new terrain on this follow-up to Asleep in the Back. This was the first album of theirs I discovered, and it won me over immediately. It holds together as an album (although it becomes a bit drossy down the stretch, just as its predecessor did), and the songs are strong in their own right. It is rather murkily mixed, but this adds to the charm and impact of the album, whether it's the forlorn wanderings of Fugitive Motel or the epic, astounding denouement of Grace Under Pressure.

Lyrically, Cast of Thousands can basically be taken as a gossip album. (Hence, I imagine, the title.) Songs like Snooks and Buttons and Zips are ... Read More: