Junk of the Heart is The Kook's third studio album that was released in 2011.
The album starts off with "Junk of the Heart (Happy)". It immediately grips the listener's attention with its upbeat tune. It's dance-able and really is happy. The track moves right into "How'd You Like That", which I felt had a very Kooks sound to it. The guitar in the chorus was nice, and the verses flowed well especially the pre-chorus into the chorus. The guitar solo felt a bit lacking, and I felt they could have done more with it. "Rosie" is a slower tune, still using a simple guitar line with some electronic tones from the last song. The fourth song, "Taking Pictures of You", is The Kooks I know. The beginning of the verses are almost acoustic-y, and the harmonies are absolutely lovely. "Fuck The World Off" has a funkier beat and is a nice change of pace from the past songs. It has a nice transition from the past track. When "Time Above the Earth" popped on, I thought it was an instrumental. It's a nice song with it's use of different instruments. "Runaway" had a cool beat to it, with a pre-chorus that blended the whole song together. It transitions nicely into "Is It Me", which has a melodic feel to it. The drums seem to drive this song along, as it flips between a slower feel to a more upbeat jam, especially when the guitar solo comes in. The guitar in the pre-chorus of "Killing Me" is great, but the pre-chorus/chorus itself doesn't sound like them too much--in a way, it's too slow. "Petulia" has a great intro, and I love the simple guitar it uses. The lyrics are cute, and the harmonies really help make this song. "Eskimo Kiss" reminds me of their older stuff, with it's quirky feel. The last song of the album, "Mr. Nice Guy" has awesome melodies and a steady, driven tempo. The use of piano is wonderful.
Overall, I thought the track transitions could have been made a bit better. The songs alone are nice to listen to, but put together they sound a bit clunky.
Rating: 6/10
Personal favorite tracks: "Is It Me", "Petulia", "Eskimo Kiss"