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By Adam Moerder

Astralwerks

February 3, 2005

I sincerely hope everything's going okay for the guys in Athlete. Less than two years after their debut Vehicles & Animals , the band have dropped the sunny guitars, quirky vocals, and Coldplay comparisons for keyboards, strings, and mini-series melodrama. On Tourist , Athlete become radical neo-Britpop fundamentalists according to the gospel of "Trouble" and "The Scientist". At times they tell sob stories so terrifically upsetting that even their detractors have trouble keeping tears from jerking.

The catalyst for this transformation was lead single "Wires", the stringy super-ballad leadman Joel Pott penned after his prematurely born daughter suffered from epileptic attacks. "You got wires, goin' in/ You got wires, comin' out of your skin/ You got tears, making tracks/ I got tears, that are scared of the facts," he whispers. It's the best song about childbirth since Creed's "With Arms Wide Open", though considering that song can't even hold a candle to Live's "Lightning Crashes", that's not saying much.

Drama in music works perfectly fine in mediated, tactical doses, but for Tourist , the stakes are unrealistically high. Every song aspires for that movie scene where the guy, after finding his estranged father and kicking his drug habit, is reunited with his girlfriend...in an airport. Athlete abuse the soft verse/loud chorus trick to no end, leadoff track "Chances" being the biggest culprit. After Potts sings, "Maybe there's a chance our walls might fall," a flurry of strings swiped from The Flaming Lips' "Race for the Prize" are formulaically cued. Potts then repeats the refrain until he's squeezed every drop of sentimentality from the line "Take me over." The final result is a safe cry-by-number, reproducible for a full album.

Here's the kicker: For a band that tries so hard lyrically, Athlete feel no pressure to experiment with their songwriting. Potts' best attempt at a hook here is to hold a note over swelling strings. Athlete were never a particularly innovative band, but even Vehicles & Animals 's flimsy IDM preferred to Tourist 's homophonous gloom. Athlete, you have my deepest condolences.

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Tourist Lyrics as written by Athlete

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Maybe it's just about being out on tour and missing your lover who's still back home. Even though you're having the time of your life, there's still another place where you'd rather be, huh?

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i think the 5th line is "And Bleary Eyed Photos"

great song!

this song is awesome

but what does it mean! lol i think its pretty self explanitory but does anyone have any views?

I think he's talking about being away from home and someone he cares about. "This European air it always warms my face I wish I could buy some " - perhaps this is reference to a warmer climbate (than Britain).

WHAT A LUSHIOUS SONG!!! i have been singing 'just wana be with you, my baby'all day! i think it might be how, its like a new love, and hes a tourist in it? actually, no that is a crap excuse for an explanation, no i think it maybe he has to go for work or somthing, but he feels, even though hes away, hes feels their lvoe is still strong? it might be when their on tour or something. this song is the best on tourist album, the others get boring.

athlete*** is right it is bleary eyed photos.....the lyrics are posted on the bands website

Wow, I never really payed attention to Athlete much, but this song... Wow. It's amazing.

The lyrics are lovely! I especially like, "we cannot save ourselves alone." I think there is a lot said in just that 1 line.

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Athlete, Tourist

A ccording to the record company press release, Athlete's last UK tour ended with "an explosive show at Brixton Academy". Unless the building was destroyed by an earthquake or terrorist activity this is difficult to imagine, since on the evidence of Tourist, Athlete function best as a general anaesthetic.

Of course, there's no reason why there shouldn't be pop groups who make the perfect adjunct to a nice mug of cocoa by the fire, though we must be reaching saturation point by now. If it's possible to imagine a gutted Coldplay or an even more comatose Snow Patrol, Athlete is it. Tortoise-like tempos, pathetic keyboards, soporific orchestral arrangements and dreary vocals are their trademarks, and if I were to mention that they make Supertramp sound like armageddon, you might begin to grasp the scale of the problem.

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JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – With hurricane season going on, you may be wondering, is it really a good idea to book a cruise in that time frame? Is it going to be canceled?

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Luckily, as we know, hurricanes are easy to track, so your chances of your cruise being impacted by a storm during hurricane season are slim. Changes to your itinerary may be possible, so you need to be flexible and have a plan in place.

Family vacations -- and even cruises may be on your agenda – as school is about to let out. But with hurricane season set to last through the summer, safety is always key.

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“A lot of people are concerned about traveling during hurricane season because of winds and rough weather, but the good news is the cruise lines spend billions of dollars to make sure the ship, the crew, and the passengers stay safe,” Lara said.

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As for having the best cruise time, Lara recommended-- contrary to popular belief-- try not to book your cruise at the last minute. Chances are, if you do that, all the best cabins will be booked up. And as always, just be aware of what’s happening with hurricane season and have a plan.

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