Another Love Song is an album that not too many people own. It was deleted soon after its release, and now late-coming Frames fans are forced to search online record stores and out of print and second-hand music shops in order to try and discover a copy lurking somewhere between the e and g sections. This cannot be said however, for Fitzcarraldo, the band's second album. No self respecting Frames fan would be found without it, simply because it symbolises what the Frames are about.

The Frames have always tried to break into England and their blend of anthemic stadium rock, which is shown on this LP, is perhaps aimed towards their hope of success abroad. However tied to ZTT they could not always do what they wanted and hence in parts this album suffers slightly. However, there are wonderful moments on this record and prior to the even superior Dance the Devil, it was the best album to come from Ireland in a long time. The record is worth buying solely for the wonderful way in which Glen holds back so much on the opening track, the tension is incredible as he almost whispers the lines on Revelate, the band's comeback single after Another Love Song.

The highlight though must be the truly wonderful title track, similar in many ways to the respective track on their third album, Dance the Devil and it is moments like this that show the band's true colours and allow them to break free from the sometimes less inspiring moments such as Evergreen. Good as these tracks are, I feel they sometimes fall into the average category compared with some of the superior pieces on this record like the aforementioned title track and live favourite Red Chord.

The drifting Your Face is something completely different; a wandering violin accompanies Hansard's tender elegy. It is as good a love song as was ever written and Glen Hansard's songwriting should not be overlooked of the praise it deserves. It is typical of the true powerfulness of many of the songs on this album like Angel at my Table, songs which are not ones you will forget easily, songs which don't fade into the mediocre stream of rock songs that are produced every single day. Your Face possesses that unique special quality that very few songs do.

The songs also have the same captivating aura live, which proves their worth is more lasting than a 45 minute CD. On this record the band does not try to be something it is not, it avoids the pretension and often irritating over ambition that some artists fall into, and so the sincerity in the songs is far more implicit and easily understood. The band relies heavily on their musical ability, lyrics and emotion to pull them through rather than image or experimental style, and from this perseverance, comes wonderful moments, that really set The Frames aside from all the other bands, who have picked up the same instruments but produced lesser quality songs.