The Place we Ran FromFiction **

Tired Pony is Gary Lightbody and a band of six musician friends that happens to include Peter Buck, Iain Archer and Garrett "Jacknife" Lee. Recorded in a week, The Place We Ran Fromis also the "country-tinged" album Lightbody has always wanted to make. Sounds promising, right? Well hold your horses. Lacking the diversity of Lightbody's Reindeer Sectionproject, this is an altogether less tasty concoction than the ingredients should produce. Lightbody's blinkered songwriting range is once again exposed as the 10 tracks stick firmly to Snow Patrol's bland, sickly-sweet melody template, failing to grab the attention or tug at the affections of the listener. Standout track Dead American Writersis a chart-polished, semi-country number very much in the vein of Tom Petty. With a crew this talented, this is a missed opportunity.

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Download tracks: Dead American Writers, I Am A Landslide