Post-punk was probably one of the most interesting and exciting phases in 80's music. It was the genre that would eventually become the mommy of alternative rock, goth rock and new wave. Devo, The Fall, The Cure, Joy Division and co. began adding another dimension to raw and abrasive 70's punk by introducing more challenging song structures and genuinely interesting lyrical themes. Post-punk however died while giving birth to her three aforementioned sons and remained forgotten till the turn of the millennium. After the new wave, goth rock, grunge, britpop and post-grunge dust settled, a post-punk revival was witnessed in the early 00's. Franz Ferdinand, Kaiser Chiefs and The Killers topped the charts, ruled radiowaves and could be seen on pretty much every music channel. Despite of having a few kickass singles, almost all full lengths of these revivalist bands sucked halfway through. They always lost the listener after the first half. Another problem with these records was that they were very forgettable, and it can be seen now. Not many people remember a song from Franz Ferdinand's debut other than Take Me Out. Tracks other than Mr. Brightside, All These Things I've Done and Somebody Told Me from The Killers' Hot Fuss have unsuspectingly faded out of many people's memories. A notable exception to this bunch of however was Editors' The Back Room. The Back Room was released in 2005, pretty much the same time the above records came out. However, unlike it's contemporaries, The Back Room was/is an astonishingly consistent and memorable CD. The band grabs the listener on the opener Lights with it's incredible display of passion, intensity and gloomy atmosphere and doesn't let go till all eleven tracks end. Having been born just an year after Ian Smith's death and possessing a similar voice, it would be fair to call vocalist Tom Smith the second coming of the legendary Joy Division frontman. His intensely passionate vocals are perfectly complemented by Chris Urbanowicz's fiery guitars, Russell Leetch's frantic bass and Ed Lay's fierce one-two-ish drumming. The songs on the record are nothing short of stunning. Almost all of the eleven songs are equally beautiful and unforgettable. The first seven songs of the album are easily better than the four that follow, but this still is a very consistent album. Editors perfectly recapture the gloom, melancholy and intensity of Post-punk legends like Joy Division on the record. The Back Room was followed by a much inferior album, An End Has a Start. Unfortunately, it suffered from the 'starts sucking halfay through' syndrome. However, in an era which produced countless forgettable records, The Back Room will be remembered as an unforgettable work of genius.