Thank you, San Francisco

The rockers Train dedicated their fifth studio effort to their homeland, one of the most famous American cities, San Francisco. There is no surprise that this record appears autobiographical offering us to take a short trip back to the early years of Train. The musicians had to accomplish a serious assignment. Their previous records have been regularly becoming platinum, and there was not question about slowing down. Grammy winners and performers of several charts-toppers, Train had to get down to this work as seriously and responsibly as they could. Besides, the previous album was released as long as three years ago. Well, the fifteen-year experience of solid studio labor and playing on the world’s biggest venues shoulder to shoulder with the best performers is a strong backup that guaranteed the Californian musicians another big achievement. Led by the intelligent and charismatic vocalist Pat Monahan, these rockers have recorded an album that would certainly please San Francisco.

Optimism cooked by Train

The receipt of cooking Save Me, San Francisco is simply, said Monahan. To make the record sound as it should, you have to build it on juicy riffs and easy-to-remember melodies. You should not worry about the execution. The participants of Train have learned to work so proficiently and harmonically that even the rare changes in the lineup pass almost unnoticed. You will believe in the strength of this formula after tasting the title track of the effort. It is followed by the cheerful number Hey, Soul Sister, the album’s first single. Even the alternative rockers sometimes fall under the influence of sentimentalism. When this happened to Train, they recorded a beautiful ballad called This Ain’t Goodbye with piano pushing out the guitars from the leading position. You Already Know will linger in your mind thank to its intriguing and atmospheric introduction, later followed by the classic Train music. Whatever song you pick from this album, it will overwhelm you with the sensation of joy and confidence in tomorrow. As a skillful lyricist, Pat Monahan succeeded in uniting all the compositions here by the bright mood that will make you sure: Train are now doing really fine and they have many a reason to sound so optimistic.

Amazing stability, striking skillfulness

The abundance of hit-like tunes and impressive choruses on Save Me, San Francisco brings up the idea that at least every second song here might make a radio hit. This in no way means that the other numbers here are just to fill in the space. On the contrary, should you be forced to shorten the album by one track, the selection of the composition would turn into an ordeal for your brain. The rich experience gained by the Train musicians helped them to make up a perfect track-listing where the shift from one song to another is as smooth as it can be. Everything here is where it belongs and fulfills precisely the functions it has. Save Me, San Francisco is a hymn to life that is perceived much easier than its predecessor, For Me It’s You. It was expected because of the hard times Pat Monahan had to go through before making that record. Five albums in one’s own collection is a big achievement, but five top-quality albums is an outstanding accomplishment. Train do not afford themselves to take a break or thwart the expectations of their supporters. Such stability and professionalism deserve all the praises, as well as the album Save Me, San Francisco.

Alex Bartholomew

09.11.2009

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