Radiation

Overall Album Score: 8.5 out of 10

After being absent from the studio for a whopping six years, Sarah McLachlan’s fans were beginning to wonder whether or not she was going to return. Inevitably, she did! (I wasn’t awaiting her ‘glorious’ return … I started reviewing McLachlan’s albums basically in response to Afterglow’s popularity … so the wait, for me, was instantaneous!) Just the same, this was a nice return … and you really wouldn’t have noticed that she took a six-year break. Stylistically, this is identical to Surfacing.

This is a good album that has its fair share of good melodies and beautiful moments. Besides that, it nearly manages to approach Fumbling Towards Ecstasy in its sheer breadth, but … Afterglow is just too danged accessible! Of course by “accessible,” that also sort of carries the connotation of “hollow,” but on the same note, it’s also “more likable.” Really, the first half of this album is more entertaining than any half of any Sarah McLachlan album ever was. The melodies/instrumentation/feelings of those songs are just excellent! Unfortunately, the album’s quality sort of tapers off at the end, mis-highlighted by the tediously boring “Answer.” And the rest of that half isn’t phenomenally better except for the breathtaking album-closer “Dirty Little Secret.”

Alright. So the final verdict on Afterglow is that it’s good. There’s nothing phenomenally exciting here, because we’ve been hearing McLachlan doing this type of music for more than ten years … but this is a good album. And, as I’ve said, roughly the first five songs are just great. I don’t think McLachlan fans would be disappointed with this at all.

Overall Album Score: 8.5 out of 10 (This is a nice comeback from our favorite boring pop singer! It’s almost exactly like her last album all the way back in the 1990s … but so what? That was a good album, and this one is better than that one was.)

Average Song Score: 8.5 (There’s one weak song in this bunch … But that’s more-than-made-up-for by the entertaining first-half and the beautiful conclusion at the very end.)

Album Tilt: 8.5 (This is a lovely album! Ooooohhh … it’s so lovely!)

Artist Rating: 8.5 (This might just be Sarah McLachlan’s most instantly likeable album to date. Just the same, it’s not as artistically amazing as Fumbling. So I can’t get too carried away with this rating.)

Track Reviews

Fallen 10/10

She’s back just where we left her! And this is a good pop-song! Not only is the melody really good, but the instrumentation is just spot-on. The lyrics are just fine (look, who cares if they’re self-indulgent/whiney … at least they’re not stupid). I like this song! It has a great atmosphere and it immediately catches fire. Yup. This is good old Sarah McHottie.

World on Fire 9/10

This is another really good McLachlan pop song! The general atmosphere of this, really, is as strong as ever … and I really like the melody. This one is as good (and possibly even better) than some of McLachlan’s older albums. Alright, it doesn’t quite catch fire like that last one did, but this is danged solid.

Stupid 9/10

Cool! This is yet another good song! The melody is as strong as anything … and I also really enjoy the instrumentation of this one. This is a very entertaining song. (Man … I don’t remember being so entertained through a Sarah McLachlan album … this is really great.)

Drifting 8/10

As the song’s title would suggest, this song driffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffftsssssssssssssssssssssss … Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz!!! Hmmm … Well, I still think this song has enough good merit to earn an 8. The instrumentation in particular is as superb as always. The song’s just boring … but it’s pleasant. Certainly, this is far from your average Madonna pop crapola.

Train Wreck 9/10

This is more exciting (although … that’s only relatively speaking) … And this is yet another finely entertaining song from our favorite chick-singer. This one has an excellent melody that’s topped off with an upbeat tempo and exquisite instrumentation. No wonder this lady is so popular.

Push 8/10

Again, there’s a really good melody here … but this song is rather dreary … and, frankly, I’m getting a bit bored. Nevertheless, it’s very difficult for me not to appreciate this song. It’s solid! Solid is good.

Answer 6/10

This song is really boring … and really slow … and it gives all the “I-Don’t-Like-Sarah-McLachlan-Because-She’s-Really-Boring” people a case to work off of. Come on, lady! I need something more exciting than this! The music is nice and calm … and I’m about to fall asleep. Arrgeoigoeieooroggg! A big disappointment, this!

Time 8/10

Much better. This song actually has a dramatic element as opposed to that last track’s big fat nothing. The melody fails to exhilarate me like they did at many, many previous points of the album … but the instrumentation is still fine. And, as I’ve said, the song has dramatics. So this is entertaining, sorta.

Perfect Girl 8.5/10

Good melody! Yeah … the song has that typical ‘boring-old’ Sarah McLachlan feel to it, but it’s all to easy to find myself pleasantly drifting away with this one! This ain’t a great song, but it’s pleasant almost to the extreme!

Dirty Little Secret 9.5/10

I knew that McLachlan was saving something nice to close her album with! And … ooooooooo … this song is nice and beautiful. The melody is simply excellent. Of course, the song’s pacing is slow … but you’ve got to like that by now if you’ve been hanging onto Sarah McLachlan for this long! This one is relatively minimalist … but it’s utterly gorgeous. … And, she’s been all-too-capable of being gorgeous in the past. This is just even more-so. Another keeper!

Thoughts? Questions? Insults? Send me your comments regarding this album here!