Album Review: The Script – Satellites
3 min read
Irish pop-rock group, The Script, return with their seventh studio album, Satellites, under BMG. The Dublin-based band, who most will likely know from their stratospheric hit The Man Who Can’t Be Moved, promised twelve distinctly unique tracks ranging from pop to heartfelt folk-ballads, and everything in between!! With frontman Danny O’Donoghue co-writing tracks, the group (who were a spinoff of Irish boyband Mytown in 2001) have enjoyed six UK number one albums, filling countless arenas and selling over 12 million albums. This latest offering is somewhat of a new direction, following the untimely death of guitarist Mark Sheehan in 2023, with long time tour member Ben Sargeant and newcomer Ben Weaver joining the band as bassist and lead guitarist, respectively, turning the trio into a quartet, as being a trio “would never be the same”. Here’s hoping to an album that sends Mark on his journey into ‘the beyond’ in some style.
Starting strong, first single release Both Ways marks the band’s return with an absolute bang!! A catchy tune, reminiscent of tracks earlier albums (especially the verses which have a whiff of No Man is an Island – an Instant Script classic!! This is followed by the short and punchy track Unsaid, continuing with Home Is Where the Hurt Is, which is similar in track length (under three minutes), but with a more ballad, anthemic quality over the punchy pop predecessor. Second single, At Your Feet, an old-style Script pop-ballad, in the mould of their previous hit No Sound Without Silence – and will provide many with a reminiscence of the reason they fell in love with The Script in the first place.
In what feels like a tribute to Mark Sheehan, Gone is upbeat and yet sad pop track – and a perfect ode to the man. This is followed by the acoustic Inside Out, which has a tinge of the Mumford and Sons about it, and title track Satellites – similarly acoustic, but with much more of a country-style ballad to it. The One Thing I Got Right begins as if it’s following in the ballad style, however it develops into a pop-rock-ballad cross, followed by the poppy Falling Flying, which has a great pacific highway kind of feel to it, and Before You Go which has a kind of 1980’s high school movie feel … the big reveal at the prom – that kind of vibe. Penultimate track Promises immediately made me think of Razorlight’s America – however where that classic kicked off, this left me a little flat, not going to lie. Rounding off the album we have Run Run Run, an upbeat track in the Bruno Mars Locked Out of Heaven mould.
What to say about Satellites… it’s a solid pop album, that’s for sure. I really like the acoustic tracks, and they don’t overstretch the tracks you would consider more filler than hit, resulting in an easy album to listen to without skipping – the total album time is thirty-five minutes. Whilst it wasn’t an album to rival their Science & Faith, nor their self-titled debut album, it is a worthy addition to the catalogue. Maybe not hitting the moon, but certainly up amongst their star albums… but I guess the clue was in the name!!
