10 Best Soft Rock Albums Of The 2000s

Dundee's number one post-Britpop outfit hit new artistic highs with the release of their fourth album. Lead singles You're All I Have and Chasing Cars saw the group crack the mainstream.

Disappointed with their own efforts with third LP Final Straw, the group knuckled down on their sound, with some members even taking classical instrument lessons ahead of recording. The result was a far more polished piece of power-pop friendly rock that managed to impress audiences and critics alike.

Frontman Gary Lightbody does a commendable job in bringing the self-reflective, often poignant lyrics to vocal life. Infusing tracks such as You Could Be Happy and Set the Fire to the Third Bar with a sense of melancholy yearning, Lightbody perfectly captures the troubled, personal vibes of the LP. The fusion of more conventional rock instrumentation with subtle electronic overtones provides a certain depth and texture to the tracks on offer. In turn, the production value and overall listening experience is more impactful than their earlier LPs, allowing the emotional punches to hit that much harder.

This more eclectic, perfectionist approach to composition and recording followed the group to their follow-up album, A Hundred Million Suns, as they continued to establish themselves as titans of softer rock.