Air Traffic - Fractured Life

The 70s got punk, the 80s got big hair, the 90s had pop of all sorts, and in 2007, we got ‘daytime’. Something needs sorting.

Insipid and repetitive, Air Traffic are essentially The Fray minus the Jesus hugging. Rather than the bearded one, songs dedicated to girls perforate every nerdy crevice. And it doesn’t take much to realise that ‘Shooting Star’’s lady address hasn’t even got the passion that’s so important with this kind of affair. With its whinge-bag vocals and oh so earnest fist-clenching chorus, it’s the kind of thing that should be mocked all the way to the bargain bin in Asda. It’s nothing but WET.

The lively drumbeats that seemed so promising on ‘Charlotte’ are only apparent on that one bright pop hope. Squashed down for the remainder of the album, they’re firmly dumped on ‘Empty Space’. Some kind of Muse-esque muddle, it’s got all the twiddling, but none of the rockness. The results are cringeworthy. Looking on the bright side, at least it does muster some feeling. Other sections just pass by unnoticed. Simply jazzy piano and drive time riffs over and over again.

Frighteningly, it’s enough to make you yearn for nu-metal…