The Cranberries
Wake Up And Smell The Coffee

THE REVIEW

"I have a dream, strange it may seem, it was my perfect day."

Thus opens the latest work by The Cranberries, a band whose genre is an increasingly pop rock, and whose philosophy of life seems to have radically changed over the years.
Upon reflection, it is more than normal for a band's music to change over the years because life gradually changes everyone, and The Cranberries have had more than ten years of career during which they have grown, changed, and their music has also evolved.

Wake Up And Smell The Coffee is an album that certainly won't go down in history. The Cranberries have given so much, becoming the most famous Irish band in the world after U2, which is hard to surpass. And in this latest album, it seems they no longer want to prove much, as if they've lost something along their artistic journey.

In my opinion, the album is not a bad product, not to be discarded or forgotten, but something is missing, it seems to be sufficient but not excellent.
The opening track is the delicate Never Grow Old, which like Analyze, talks about everyday life, the passage of time, simple things.
And in my opinion, it is one of the most positive tracks, along with Analyze, the famous first single released, which slightly reminds of the distant Dreams, Time Is Ticking Out, a small moment of critique against pollution and the second single released, This Is The Day, a very aggressive-sounding rock track and the last single from the album, Dying Inside, truly delicate and sad, I Really Hope, the album's most overwhelming track, Carry On, a sweet O'Riordan-style song, and the whispered Chocolate Brown. In particular, Dying Inside and Carry On should be appreciated because, in my opinion, they bring back the early works and really evoke the dark blueberries of the Irish woods when they were still unripe.

Yes, because these blueberries have a new flavor, they have matured, but they don't work like they used to, and soon they themselves will detach from the tree of glory to take different paths.
In this collection, the track that gives the album its name is also notable, as it appears aggressive and beautiful, but has an intro that's too long, and still seems to lack a certain something. The Concept also proves to be a good song, and listening to the initial melody, it seems less like a Cranberries piece, but towards the end, it’s 100% Cranberries when Dolores repeats "Night all night all night, night all night all night..".
Special mention goes to Pretty Eyes, accompanied by the piano, which isn’t a bad piece at all, but along with many other songs, it seems a bit lacking in the soul of The Cranberries.
The same goes for Do You Know, while Every Morning is the least appealing episode of the album, with a chorus that leaves a bit to be desired.

In short, it isn't the Cranberries album I would recommend to someone who doesn't already love them, it's not their greatest masterpiece and is far from being one, with only a few pieces that can be considered masterpieces. However, it is by no means an inadequate album because the sound is pleasant and there are quite a few rather good tracks, besides the fact that the album appears sincere and humble for a band of their stature. But my rating is also influenced by the fact that I like their music, while recognizing and reiterating that the TRUE Cranberries are not these.