Driving through a Passenger review without mentioning Nizlopi or James Blunt would be an achievement of juggernaut proportions. Their jingle-pop keyboards meshed with melancholic acoustics wouldn’t feel out of place in the Christmas charts. Lead single ‘Do What You Like’ tells the tale of Mike Rosenburg’s attempt to revive a loving relationship that seems to be getting stale. And in many ways its premise is analogous to an album that is in parts secretly beautiful and full of great moments, but lacking the grit and determination to make it brilliant. Great moments like ‘Things You’ve Never Done’ a track laden with memorizing guitars, flowering strings, operatic bliss and Rosenburg’s raconteur lyrics, it screams influences like James Taylor and Turin Brakes. Unfortunately, their tendency to indulge in romanticism, swirling melodies and storytelling is where it falls down and begins to feel a little wearisome. ‘Four Horses’ could well be a Will Young B-side while the throwaway monotony of ‘Walk In The Rain’ isn’t saved by a soaring violin part. In a misguided attempt to sound epic and anthemic, you get the feeling Passenger may just be a wee bit lost.
