Nashville trio
Paper Route shine on their third album
Real Emotion. Balancing hook-heavy anthems with sweeping atmospherics, they channel a wide swath of influences -- trip-hop, Brit-pop, '90s alternative -- but mostly capture the spirit of
OneRepublic,
Radiohead, or
Coldplay (albeit on a slightly smaller scale). They're just as comfortable exercising restraint ("Second Place," "Love Is Red") as they are unleashing big statements ("Pretend," "Real Emotion"), which is part of the appeal of the collection. The immediate standouts are the radio-friendly, could-be hits: "Writing on the Wall" blends
the Black Keys with the energy of bands like
Klaxons or
Foster the People; "Mona Lisa" shimmers and struts like
Børns or
Young the Giant; "Laugh About It" rides an elastic bassline all the way through
Fitz & the Tantrums territory, and album highlight "Chariots" takes the crown with a glorious 2-step garage break reminiscent of
Hard-Fi or
Kasabian. However, taking a moment to focus on the less-flashy tunes and delve into the heart of
Real Emotion will result in a deeper payoff. The angelic "Untitled" and the ethereal "Blue Collar Daydream" offer early respite via
Coldplay's icy
Ghost Stories, while the two-part "Lara" and "Zhivago" build upon ambient atmosphere and an arena-ready closing burst that would make the good Doctor proud. Much like the quieter material on their first two albums (think "No Sudden Revelations" and "Tamed"), the trio that ends
Real Emotion is a comforting comedown, tapping into those
Massive Attack/
Björk/
Sneaker Pimps influences. There's enough going on to please a variety of tastes: this is one of those "sounds like a greatest-hits album even though it's not" albums. ~ Neil Z. Yeung