Constantines - Tournament of Hearts [Bonus Track]

More about refinement than reinvention, Tournament Of Hearts gives The Constantines' sound just a few tweaks that add up to even more impact. While Shine A Light gave a better grasp of the band's ability to span combustible rock and lighters-aloft ballads, Tournament Of Hearts focuses their aggression and beauty into a set of songs that are slightly more accessible but still formidable. The life-and-death urgency that has characterized The Constantines' work from the beginning is still here, most notably on the fantastic, charging opener, "Draw Us Lines" -- which does with a few, artfully placed guitar blasts what legions of other bands try to do with their amps continually cranked to 11 -- and its stealthy but just as hard-hitting follow-up, "Hotline Operator." And, with its "Sweet Child O' Mine"-like guitar breakdown and lyrics like "we won't be undersold," "Working Full-Time" touches on the band's common-man roots (unlike too many indie rock bands, The Constantines never sound elitist). Read More