Forming in 2009, Broken Bells Brian Burton (Danger Mouse) and James Mercer (The Shins) released their second album, After the Disco, in February; fitting as most of the songs on the record sound like an afterthought. Not to despair all fans, as there are glimmers of hope in the album. For example, in the last two minutes of “Perfect World,‰” the gimmicky background music becomes a song and we start paying attention again. After mulling through tracks 2-6, track 7 saves the day with “Lazy Wonderland,‰” reminding us why we fell in love with James Mercer in the first place. After the Disco is an unbalanced album, missing a cohesiveness desperately needed to wake up the listener. Taking a line from “Control,‰” Nothing stays around too long. You lost control. You gotta give it up ‰ÛÒ sums up the entirety of the album as the saving grace in the album is only a couple of moments that give us hope but then quickly disappear.

RIYL: The Shins, Postal Service, Keane
Recommended: Parts of 1, 7, 10