914b The Cranberries - No Need to Argue (1994)

 914b The Cranberries - No Need to Argue (1994)

Studio album - Rock




About the Act:

The Cranberries were an Irish Pop Rock band from 1989-2003, and again from 2009-2019. They are sometimes billed as Alternative Rock. They were fronted by Dolores O'Riordan, who sang and wrote most of the lyrics.

They released 8 albums, and disbanded after Dolores died.


About the Album:

This was their second album.


My History with this Album:

None, although I know the song "Zombie", and I think I recognise the song "Daffodil Lament".


Review:

Somehow this got listed in my list as "Everybody Else Is Doing It, So Why Can't We?/No Need to Argue", and I had assumed that this was because they had been released as a double album package.  I have not found any such release, so you are going to get a twofer for number 914.

Having just reviewed their first album, then, it seems obvious to do comparisons. This album is generally darker and more serious. It starts with a couple of lighter love songs, then launches into "Zombie" which is about the Irish troubles, and from there is solidly in the territory of worthy and darker songs, until the last couple of tracks, Daffodil Lament and No Need to Argue, both of which are quite odd, poetic and about lost love. In some ways the album is like a journey so it feels well put-together.  Musically, it is mostly still fairly accessible pop-rock although Zombie is quite grungey, a bit like Nirvana, and from then the music becomes less heavy but still quite dark. sometimes even ethereal.  

In the last review, I likened Dolores' singing to Dido, and I still think that there is an element of the same tonal quality to her voice, but actually her delivery and ornamentation remind me a lot of Alanis Morissette.

I liked it at the start, and Zombie is a strong song. Some of the middle tracks are a bit too on-the-nose for me, lacking subtlety, but then the last two tracks bring it back, by embracing some weirdness, in a good way. Did I like it more than the first album? Not sure, it's less accessible, and darker, so I think it's mood-dependent. On balance, different, but I will give it the same score.  

7/10


Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/5GugLrmYMl5VRoe2zNgLGp?highlight=spotify:track:1ODEng2FFlNltR6S949ynx

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLiN-7mukU_REYcZqufl-XXA9TESC7P3w7

Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No_Need_to_Argue


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