albums and tracks

Necessity is the mother of invention, apparently. So does the complete lack of invention shown on Silent Cry mean that the last thing the world really needs is another album from the band who bought us 'Buck Rogers'?

It'd be churlish to suggest that we've never needed Feeder. The Welsh trio's early records helped fill a gaping Britrock void in the late '90s, and since 2001's Echo Park they've unleashed a handful of mini pop-classics that sit beautifully alongside 'Bohemian Like You' and 'Breakfast at Tiffany's' on local radio stations across the land - admittedly, a back-handed compliment if ever there were one.

But the band's sixth record abandons that joyous melodic sensibility in favour of a faux-anthemic Snow Patrol approach. Opening track and lead single 'We Are The People' is a directionless dirge, produced, dubbed and layered to within an inch of its life to hide a chronic lack of energy. And while 'Miss You' hints at their previous scratchy punk-pop brilliance, it's one of only a few moments of light relief in an album full of humourless attempts at mature radio ballads.

Silent Cry's 45 minutes are an overlong and tiring listen. At 13 tracks, it's like having to explain the same thing over and over to a stupid co-worker. And surely there's no need for music that reminds you of that feeling.

Jonathan Deamer