Said by some to be reminiscent of the early Cranberries era sound, "Conduct" (originally titled "Conduct Yourself") opens the album, and the track is a perfect way to open the album, with a gentle but persistent guitar riff introducing us to the track and ultimately to the album. The song is expansive and beautiful and features strings, and I want so badly to slow dance to it. I absolutely love the lyrics of the song because it seems to open from the perspective of someone who has just gotten into a major fight with his/her significant other and feels worthless, feels like he/she is not contributing anything to the relationship; he/she therefore declares that the relationship should end since the two of them obviously don't work, but it's clear by the end of the song that this speaker does not mean that, that he/she said that impulsively and is very much in love with his/her significant other; it's a really adorable song with which I am in love. "Tomorrow' is arguably the "poppiest" song on the album, which is why it's no surprise that it's the album's lead single. It's basically your typical 90s alternative rock song and begs the listener to seize control of his/her life before it's too late.
"Fire & Soul" is really interesting; it's a quiet song with a gentle beat primarily underneath an acoustic guitar, and the lyrics are what is interesting. My boyfriend pointed out that the lyrics seem to speak of someone that has been unfaithful to his/her significant other in some way and now wants forgiveness because he/she just wanted a momentary loss of control, and upon closer examination, I agree with him; there is, of course, nothing saying that that is definitely Dolores and Noel's intention, but it is definitely valid. I adore "Raining in My Heart" (nearly ten years old, as it was originally intended for the sixth album that didn't happen until now) as it reminds me of Avril Lavigne and features the accordion (maybe to make up for the inexplicably common misconception that Sixpence None the Richer's "Kiss Me" is a Cranberries number), one of my absolute favorite instruments; the song is very catchy (I love the "If I could fly, you know that I'd try" line) and is about, as is typical of Dolores, hating to be away from someone that you love, something to which I relate, which is something that initially drew me to her music in the first place; it definitely sounds single-friendly and could very well potentially be a future single.
"Losing My Mind" has grown on me since the first time that I heard it, but it still is far from being my favorite; a slow song with a refrain that picks up power, it sounds like an ARE YOU LISTENING? scrap, and it's weak compared to some of the other songs on the album. A song that warns listeners not to engage in casual, promiscuous sex, "Schizophrenic Playboys" is definitely the heaviest track on the album and is also one of the weaker tracks, which I think, for me, is primarily because it didn't meet my high expectations (a live version of the song could be heard online many months prior to the release of the album), and I also have a problem with the lyrics; Dolores belts out that girls shouldn't trust schizophrenic playboys and that boys shouldn't trust schizophrenic playgirls, but not once does she match the two, so if one didn't know better (which I do, because I know that Dolores is an open-minded liberal that supports equal rights), he/she would think that the song is yet another song with lyrics that assume that everyone is straight, and I'm surprised because Dolores has voiced flattery when told that she is considered by some to be a lesbian icon; I just would have appreciated those lyrics being more inclusive.
"Waiting in Walthamstow" (Walthamstow is a district of London) is my favorite song from the album and is totally and completely different from anything that the band or Dolores has done to date. A very slow song in minor key, it is heavily dependent on strings, and if the whispery, melancholy vocals aren't enough to express the tone of the song, the melody, with a flow of notes that seems to cry, certainly does. The lyrics are nothing new for the Cranberries, as they express the sadness of being far away from someone that you deeply love, but the music certainly is. "Show Me" (originally titled "Show Me the Way") has been criticized as being too radio-friendly for its own good, but I don't agree with that, as the Cranberries have always had many radio-friendly songs ("Just My Imagination" and "Linger" come to mind), and "Show Me" is no exception; I love the intense strings that just about bring me to tears. This song is unique as it is actually the first song to have been released by the band from ROSES, even though it is not the album's lead single, and it has been played on some radio stations.
"Astral Projections" is my second favorite track from the album, for sure, as it is, if this makes any sense, dreamy. The band first performed the song nearly ten years ago when it was performing in preparation for the sixth album (which, again, obviously ended up being scrapped and becoming 2012's ROSES), but anything that could be accessed online was in very poor quality and could barely be understood, but I could hear enough to know that it was a good song, and it certainly is. When I first heard the song, I had had a rather rough day, and the lulling nature of the song's verses is enough to calm a monster; it even manages to have a slight country sound to it without, in the slightest way, being country. "So Good" is another quiet one with strings, a very simple song about being in love, and "Roses" is the closing track on the standard edition, and it has yet to do much for me; I'm still waiting for it to grow on me, which it very well could (ARE YOU LISTENING?'s "Ecstasy" is one that I initially didn't care for, and now, I can't imagine that album without that song) - it's just, at this point, very dull and sounds like a NO NEED TO ARGUE scrap.
What is incredibly frustrating is that there are multiple b-sides and bonus tracks which are scattered across different editions of the album, most of which are not available here in the United States. In the United States, only "Always" (a really fun, upbeat, catchy tune similar to "Stars") is available, and even that is only if you buy it via iTunes. Elsewhere, many other b-sides and bonus tracks are available, such as "Perfect World" (definitely one of my absolute favorites from the album as a whole), "Stop Me" (also one of my absolute favorites, an insistent, confidently independent song that is a great deal of fun), "In It Together" (also one that was performed live nearly ten years ago, this upbeat love song really reminds me of Avril Lavigne and features parts that remind me of "Zombie" and "This Is the Day" as it features a line of notes that both songs feature), "Serendipity" (slow and very pretty), and "Someday" (yet another that was intended for the album that never happened nearly ten years ago, this moderate alternative number that pays tribute to "When You're Gone" is still growing on me).
I really wish that the band would release a separate EP featuring the b-sides, especially since there is yet another titled "Eyelash" that, as far as I know, no one has heard, but I, for now, digress. ROSES is, overall, definitely a slow, quiet album, but that definitely works for what it tries to accomplish, which I would say is the kind of album that you might want to take with you during a stroll through the park on Sunday afternoon. I absolutely love it, and I might even have to go as far as to say that it's my favorite Cranberries album to date (although not my favorite Dolores album in general, as I don't think that anything will ever trump ARE YOU LISTENING? for me). I just wish that some of the weaker tracks were switched with some of the strong b-sides and bonus tracks, but again, I digress. ROSES is definitely an immensely successful effort that I highly praise, and let us cranfans sincerely hope that Dolores (and the rest of the band, although I'm personally happy as long as she herself continues recording music) keeps up this streak of such amazing, beautiful, breathtaking music, even though, as I said, ARE YOU LISTENING? will likely never be trumped.
