Considering that Travis has spent the years since 1999's The Man Who settling into a quiet, unperturbed groove, it comes as a bit of a relief to hear Travis open Ode to J. Smith with a rush of guitars on "Chinese Blues." For some bands, this surge of six strings may seem reserved but for Travis it's positively rude, a welcome attempt to reconnect to their Brit-pop roots, when they were seen as heirs to Oasis' lad-friendly rock. As it turns out, Travis spent more time floating in Radiohead's wake -- with their innate politeness at times turning them into Coldplay's cousins -- and they don't escape that spacy, tasteful vibe on Ode to J. Smith, spending as much time ruminating as rocking. Nevertheless, the uptick in guitars gives Travis some definition -- more along the lines of extra texture than muscle -- and this gives the album some added color, especially when compared to its gentle, sepia-toned predecessor The Boy with No Name, which was otherwise appealing. Ode isn't quite as strong song-wise as The Boy but it makes up for the difference with its deepened palette -- again, this palette may not be as rich as some of their peers, but compared to Travis' other work of the past decade, this is richer and livelier as sheer sonics go. Now if they could find a way to marry this feel to the songcraft of The Boy with No Name, they'd wind up with an album that fulfilled the promise of both Good Feeling and The Man Who.
A lot of people this year have been talking about how awesome the new Verve album is or how much they either hated or loved the new Oasis, however there is one British band many seem to be ignoring. I am talking about Ode to J. Smith by Travis, which in my opinion, is one of their best to date. Sure it doesn't sound like their big hits "Why Does It Always Rain On Me" or "Sing", but they seamles...
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When I hear the name Travis, I automatically think of that song, "Sing," that dominated airways back in 2001. I know you're singing it in your head right now. I haven't paid much attention to the band in past years, but this "J. Smith" character has me intrigued. It's off their upcoming album, due out November [...]
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Album number six from Travis - recorded in just two weeks, the band have declared this their ''loudest and edgiest yet''. Were they ever edgy to begin with? Or that loud for that matter?
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Pictures: http://www.flickr.com/photos/champersnova/2619282766/ (Tried to upload some here but it failed) A beautiful Saturday afternoon. Sun is shining gloriously processing into one's bones. I am lying down here on this couch feeling the breeze flowing in from the window - trying to rest my feet-legs on a linen cushion. Can't help asking to myself, was it real what happened last night? Is it ...
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First, let me clarify the title. The latest Travis album, Ode to J Smith, has been out in the UK for a few weeks, but doesn't get a proper release in the US until November 4th. I guess the people who make decisions (deciders!) about album release dates did not realize that November 4th is [...]
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Since I'm in the Travis mood here's their new single. I dedicate this song for you to remember during those uncomfortable moments at work when y're having that kind of day when you need a melody to keep you going. Something Anything is that kind of song. A little bit of an edge from Fran and the boys. I dig it.
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It's not been a long time since the beautiful Scots - Travis released their long-time anticipated 5th studio album The Boy With No Name which to me has been underrated within the ocean of new records drifting all around in 2007- and maybe due to the not spot on single choices. Fans would know how long we had to wait for that rescue record to take Travis out of shadow after more than 3 year of w...
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Pictures: http://www.flickr.com/photos/champersnova/2619282766/ (Tried to upload some here but it failed) A beautiful Saturday afternoon. Sun is shining gloriously processing into one's bones. I am lying down here on this couch feeling the breeze flowing in from the window - trying to rest my feet-legs on a linen cushion. Can't help asking to myself, was it real what happened last night? Is it ...
More >
A lot of people this year have been talking about how awesome the new Verve album is or how much they either hated or loved the new Oasis, however there is one British band many seem to be ignoring. I am talking about Ode to J. Smith by Travis, which in my opinion, is one of their best to date. Sure it doesn't sound like their big hits "Why Does It Always Rain On Me" or "Sing", but they seamles...
More >
Travis have announced details for their only US show this year. The Scottish band is set to play the Troubadour in Los Angeles next month.The one-off show will take place November 11 and will be in support of their new album, 'Ode To J Smith ', due out November 4. Travis
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Back when Travis released the "Something Anything" video, we learned the song appears on the band's forthcoming Ode To J. Smith album. We also learned the album features a song called "J. Smith." So the album is an ode to a song that's on the album. That is the height of titular circularity. As then noted: it "must be a good song." Probably better to have said "it better be a good song." Worry ...
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When I hear the name Travis, I automatically think of that song, "Sing," that dominated airways back in 2001. I know you're singing it in your head right now. I haven't paid much attention to the band in past years, but this "J. Smith" character has me intrigued. It's off their upcoming album, due out November [...]
More >
Album number six from Travis - recorded in just two weeks, the band have declared this their ''loudest and edgiest yet''. Were they ever edgy to begin with? Or that loud for that matter?
More >
Since Travis returned last year after a four-year hiatus with The Boy with No Name, the band has been absurdly prolific. Not only is another album coming out this year (Ode to J. Smith), but Travis has now released three videos for it (see video for the title track here).Here’s the latest, for Song to [...]
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It's not a very spectacular week, in terms of new musical releases, but there are some pretty interesting stuff to pick from, nonetheless.After the UK release last month, which got pretty well received, Travis put out their latest album, titled "Ode to J. Smith," on the US shelves, as...
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Travis' new album, Ode to J. Smith, has been out since late September in the United Kingdom, but it gets a U.S. release on Tuesday - which will be a pretty big day, if you ask me. As a little incentive, the band is offering a full stream of the album at its MySpace page. [...]
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This weekend was one of those gorgeous, Autumn-in-the-air kinds of weekends that just beg for you to get out into it and soak up all the colours and flavours of the season. And while I did get out and enjoy the scenery some, I also spent the better part of it indoors, trying to add a little freshness to my digs. Saturday morning I spent a couple of hours re-arranging the furniture in my livin...
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MP3: Travis - "J. Smith" from Ode to J. Smith, due November 4 on Red Telephone Box. Gosh, remember Travis? Five years ago, Johnny Loftus kicked off his piece covering the band's Detroit stop with the quote: "Travis is so...
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| Title | Lyrics | Buy |
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| 1 Chinese Blues |
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| 2 J. Smith |
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| 3 Something Anything |
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| 4 Long Way Down |
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| 5 Broken Mirror |
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| 6 Last Words |
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| 7 Quite Free |
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| 8 Get Up |
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| 9 Friends |
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| 10 Song to Self |
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| 11 Before You Were Young |
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Click to purchase…
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 "Ode to J. Smith")
