In the early 90s it was Blur, then Oasis. Then it was Radiohead and The Verve. By 2000 and 2001, the U.K. was gushing over Radiohead (again) along with Travis and Coldplay. England has had a tradition of sending over-hyped up bands. Most of them, with the exception of Oasis, Radiohead, and arguably Blur, either had one hit song or they became favorites for a small handful of fans.

The jury might still be out on Travis and Coldplay, but the next big hype has landed on our shores. Starsailor was already being declared the best new band of the year in England’s “New Musical Express” before they had even released their debut album.

From the first notes of Love is Here, it’s easy to see that the band listened to all of the other bands and more. The guitar line from “Poor Misguided Fool” sounds very much like Blur’s “Coffee and TV.” Vocalist James Walsh has just a touch of that Thom Yorke howl. If there is something that stands out about Starsailor, it is probably the fact that their first single, “Good Souls” is about (gasp) good people.

The average British music fan will probably find enough to enjoy here. Fans of Oasis, Coldplay, Travis, and pre-“Kid A” Radiohead will enjoy this the most. However, the rock scene in the U.K. needs to stop copying off of each other or no one is going to have any great amount of success. At least Radiohead caught on to that.

Grade: B+