Album Review: The Wanted [EP] by The Wanted

The other English-Irish boy band to crash the States in 2012 is slyer than its apple-cheeked counterparts in One Direction, as evidenced by its demi-entendre hit "Glad You Came." But on this EP, the Wanted take cues from Coldplay ("Clocks"-style piano shows up on "Gold Forever") and Kings of Leon ("Use Somebody" moans swirl around "Lose My Mind") to no avail, and their dance pop droops where it should bounce. Playing the brooding type might get girls' attention, but it isn't fun to listen to. Listen to The Wanted's "Glad You Came": Related• Photos: Random Notes .

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The Wanted's 2012 release The EP combines tracks off the British boy band's two previous albums, including the group's 2010 self-titled debut and 2011's Battleground. In that sense, the album works as a kind of introduction to the U. S.

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To the uninitiated, finding the differences between this English-Irish boy band and their fellow U.K. quintet One Direction is like splitting carefully gelled hairs. After all, they’re both five-bloke packs of medium-good singers shilling Top 40-targeted jams. But if 1D have a lock on the slumber-party set, the Wanted are after their fake-ID-toting older sisters: Club-ready, irresistibly hooky tracks on The Wanted like ”Gold Forever” and already ubiquitous ”Glad You Came” (culled from the group’s two hit British LPs) practically come with their own fog-and-laser shows.

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