Dark pop subversion. After the town-by-town converting that went on for their debut record, and all the resulting promise and anticipation that was built up, Editors returned with a bona fide anthem. Smokers is a crowd pleasing singlalong with loud, sweeping guitars and melodies, a choir and some...troubling lyrics. "Say goodbye to everyone you have ever known, You are not going to see them ever again." Smokers went top 10 here in the UK and that was important. Not only did it occupy mainstream space with a not-so-covert downbeat theme, it reassured fans who had been burned in the past by giving their love to unworthy musical suitors. The sophomore slump was dispelled and they established themselves as a group you could trust. Every generation needs a band of substance that they can rely on, to help distil the often confusing things they're feeling into a soundtrack for their lives. For a lot of us, Editors did just that.