"It's all a game of chance, they say in Wonderland"

It seems that pop stars are getting younger. Hilary Duff, Charlotte Church, Jo Jo and Joss Stone have yet to reach their 20th birthday. This recent burst of teenage stars collides, quite comfortably, with the new trend of "boy bands-with-guitars."The oxymoron of talented boy bands. Yes, you can believe what you are seeing, pretty boys, who dress well, in a band, who play their own instruments and-wait for it- write their own songs! What is the world coming to? A better one, lacking boy bands in suits and microphones that they mime into and break nine year old girls hearts when they admit that at least one of their members are gay.

Busted can claim the title as the band that kick-started this revolution. (Although be to incredibly technical, The Beatles were the very first band of this kind.) The eldest being of 18 years of age, they were meant to be a rock band, but somehow got sucked into the pop mainstream. Not long after, their friends created a four piece of essentially the same band, named after a character in a movie that was released around the same time as they were born, it was McFly. Busted broke up soon after.

It is too easy to dismiss McFly. What with their incessant chirpiness, their Beach Boys-esq. harmonies in songs about the girl next door that they can't get and the fact that they are a boy band with guitars, you must hate them, right? Wrong. McFly, are, in fact, an incredibly decent band. It is hard to believe, but this, their sophomore effort, displays not only maturity of personalities, but also of song writing and playing. Boybands with guitars, 1. Rest of world, 0.

"You're sleeping with the TV on, and you're lying in an empty bed,
all the alcohol in the world, could never help me to forget."
Wonderland, (as in "Alice in") opens with some incessant chirpiness! A song named I'll Be Ok. If this was an emo song, it would probably be about suicide and the title would be sarcasm. However, this is a rousing anthem to all those not feeling the best. The second single off this album, it proved to be a popular choice with fans.

“He cant afford the prices for, the new kitchen floor he's buying...
he's been a drunk all his life, two kids, a dog and a wife.”
The last single to be lifted from this album was a double A-side. The second of the songs was a very different song named the Ballad Of Paul K. Who is Paul K? Paul K is a man suffering from a mid-life crisis, alienated from his family and unable to pay the bills or look after himself. McFly encase this tale with beautiful acoustic guitars, and a rising middle eight that shows off co-frontman Danny Jones’s voice to amazing effect. Completely different to anything currently being offered by todays' market, this is an excellent song to display the boy's maturity.

“One by one, drinks are gone, do I have to stay?
Hate the sound, of one more pound, as it rolls away.”
Don’t Know Why is a song written by Jones, however as he struggled with some lyrics, he phoned his elder sister, Vicky who helped him. On the album cover sleeve, this song is written V. Jones/ D. Jones. His sibling’s help didn’t do much, as the lyrics to this are not the best. The rhymes are quite weak, but are made up by the chiming guitar solo at the end.

“I found something she wrote, a long time ago
And it reminds me of a place I know, called Memory lane.”
Memory Lane, the album’s closer, is very appropriate for people in McFly’s position. The wholly Beatles-sounding story of coming home after being on tour for two years and everything being different, the harmonies between the co frontmen, Jones and Tom Fletcher bring the album to a beautiful, melodic close.

“I’m feeling down and I hate the sound, of nothing,
what's the point in hanging around, for nothing?”
Nothing emphasises the band- in particular Fletcher’s -love of the Beach Boys. A negative song set to upbeat, jangley guitars and unpinned by Dougie Poynter’s driving bassline. It’s probably very hard to find another band that can sing “this misery, taking every memory.” And sound so delighted about it.

“So hold me close and say three words, like you used to do.
Dancing on the kitchen tiles, it's all about you.”
The first single taken from this album was for the charity Comic Relief. All About You is a beautiful, mature, string-laden song, and a far cry from their earlier days of 5 Colours In Her Hair and Surfer Babe. The song truly picks up at the end when Harry Judd’s drums crash into a beautiful rendition of the harmonised chorus.

“She's not got that much more to give, please save me,
I've been waiting, been aching for too long”
I always challenge anyone with a negative opinion of McFly to listen to what is possibly the most unexpected direction they could have taken with the two parts of She Falls Asleep, and then decide on their opinion of them. Where All About You was string laden, but layered with acoustic guitars, She Falls Asleep is entirely strings, layered with piano. She Falls Asleep (part 1) is an instrumental, which wouldn’t sound out of place on a classical album. Yes, you did read that right. This fades into the second part of She Falls Asleep, where Fletcher’s voice is carried by the strings to tell the story of the girl who falls asleep, because she lives a life of desperation. The peak of beauty on this album, Fletcher’s piano playing is delicate, light and chiming.

“The stars collide, will you stand by and watch them fall?
So hold me 'til the sky is clear, and whisper words of love right into my ear”
The only song to hark back to their previous album is I’ve Got You. Upbeat, harmonised and brilliant, this song was wasted by not becoming a single. A vivid song, with many images created, it is another rousing anthem.

“Mrs Halloween, is drinking at the bar again in New Orleans
She throws another dart, and narrowly avoids my lonely broken heart”
The first song of the last A-side single was the gorgeous Ultraviolet. A song in which the middle eight completely changes it. A firm favourite with fans at concerts, as the band are bathed in (funnily enough) ultraviolet light. Another song with vivid images, Fletcher’s voice comes across as both mature and developed and the harmony guitars interplay recalls the sounds of the Beatles.

“Attention please! We interrupt this program, with some disturbing news,
World wide evacuation, we're going to lose, we've pulverised the nation”
Upon first listen to I Wanna Hold You you’d be forgiven for thinking this was the latest Bond tune. Laden with strings and introduced by Fletcher’s twangy guitar, this (nearly) three minute exhilarating ride of a song is a song you can put on repeat and never get sick of. A highlight of this album.

”Remember when we scratched our names into the sand,
You told me you loved me,
But now that I find, that you've changed your mind, I'm lost for words”
If any song were to be used to justify McFly’s existence in the world, Too Close For Comfort would be it. A powerful ballad, led in by a light acoustic introduction, layered over a throbbing bassline, and then Fletcher’s almost-whispered vocals arrive. This leads the way for Jones’ powerful voice, which passionately almost screams out the lyrics. Epic and powerful and an absolute must-listen.

The only thing i can fault with this album is the length. Clocking in at just over 40 minutes, it sometimes can seem incredibly short and you can find yourself listening to a song you thought you just heard 10 minutes ago. Excluding that, i can find very little wrong with this album.

So maybe McFly are the epitome of all that is wrong with music. Maybe their brand of pop- rock should be banned. Or maybe their music is actually worth a listen. What is the world coming to?