The Needles The Space
**1/2
It’s not quite growing pains, but something more akin to an identity crisis the Long Island foursome experience on their sophomore effort. An emo background entangled amongst the likes of Taking Back Sunday and Brand New is undeniable, and even though Straylight Run have taken pains to distance themselves from that rapidly-stagnating scene, at its seams Needles remains equal parts Dashboard Confessional (“Soon We’ll Be Living in the Future,” “Buttoned Down,” “The First of the Century”) and the less-genre-restricted Rilo Kiley (“The Miracle That Never Came,” “Still Alone,” “This Is the End”).
Siblings John and Michelle Nolan, who split vocal duties throughout, have upped 2004’s self-titled debut by adding a significant amount of horns, clarinets and mandolins to the mix. They may be shooting for indie credibility, but the closest the band comes is As Tall As Lion-lite with “We’ll Never Leave Again” and “Take It to Manhattan.” There’s even the occasional regression to swirling-whirlpool-of-angst a la Brand New; though in this case John’s snarling “Who Will Save Us Now” is a remarkably rousing screed against the country’s current socio-political status. Unfortunately, the rest of the album lacks similar conviction about much of anything. It’s a solid if scattershot collection—one that shows promise even though it’s still figuring out what it wants to be when it grows up.