How to Save a Life

by The Fray

Overview

The Fray were among the first of the flood of bands that combined the influence of British neo-stadium acts like Coldplay and Keane, the retro-AOR bands of the mid-'90s -- chief among them Counting Crows and the Wallflowers -- and American emo-pop bands like Something Corporate and Jimmy Eat World. The Denver four-piece has the requisite piano and flag-waving choruses of the Brits, the slick sound and unfailing conservatism of the AOR bands, and the over-emoted vocals and confessional nature that are cornerstones of emo. All the songs on their debut, How to Save a Life, sound almost exactly alike and also exactly like you would expect -- sincere, melodic, authentic, and bereft of anything surprising or exciting. This doesn't make for the kind of record that people will want to listen to over and over again but for modern rock, it isn't half-bad. A couple of songs, like "Over My Head (Cable Car)" and "Dead Wrong," might even sound good in the background of a WB teen drama. ~ Tim Sendra

Product Details

Release Date:	02/20/2007
Label:	Epic
UPC:	0828768614327
Rank:	207145

Album Credits

Performance Credits

The Fray   Primary Artist
Dave Welsh   Guitar
Joe King   Guitar,Vocals
Isaac Slade   Vocals,Piano

Technical Credits

Aaron Johnson   Audio Production,Engineer,Producer
Mike Flynn   Audio Production,Producer,A&R
Warren Huart   Digital Editing
Nathan Johnson   Cover Art
Kevin Loyal   Assistant Engineer
Alex Uychocde   Mixing Assistant
Tim Hoagland   Engineer
Joe King   Composer
Jason Ienner   Management
Michelle Holme   Art Direction
Isaac Slade   Composer
Mark Endert   Mixing
Greg Latterman   Management
Paul Mahern   Digital Editing,Engineer
James Masterson   Assistant Engineer
Stephen Marcussen   Mastering