The 88 - Not Only... But Also(Album)

Island Records

October 10, 2008, 08:20 PM

The first track "Go Go Go" was quite impressive for a first track - I hoped that this set a precedent for the rest of the album. It is extremely catchy, the instruments are utilized well, and it's very dynamic - definitely "single material" as it would certainly sell. However there wasn't much that separated each track and The 88 became quite predictable and started to sound very "samey". Which is a shame as The 88 sound like The 88 have quite a lot of potential, with both the music, and lyrics.

I get the impression that The 88 would be a great act live but The 88 need to expand their musical boundaries; as The 88 are very indie-mainstream. Which isn’t necessarily a negative point - as the audience is quite large. However, I expect a lot more from bands. I don't want an album that fades into the background as I’m listening to it, and I don't want to be able to have a choice of another twenty bands; as The 88 all sound so similar to so many other bands. It would have been better to hear more form the guitarist, as he produced numerous riffs that showed his talent, but not enough for it to be noticed.

I actually quite like this band, but I wouldn't have bought the album, I would probably listen to them on the car radio, but there isn’t enough diversity within the album itself to keep me listening. I would however be quite interested to watch them live - and see if The 88 bring something more to their show than they do on record.