The Cranberries: Dolores O'Riordan (vocals, acoustic & electric guitars, keyboards); Noel Hogan (acoustic & electric guitars); Mike Hogan (bass); Feargal Lawler (drums, percussion).

Recorded at The Magic Shop, New York, and Townhouse Studios, London and The Manor Studios, Oxford, England.

All tracks have been digitally remastered.

Personnel: Dolores O'Riordan (vocals, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, keyboards); Noel Hogan (acoustic guitar, electric guitar); Mike Hogan (bass guitar); Fergal Lawler (drums, percussion).

Audio Mixer: Edward Douglas.

Recording information: Magic Shop, New York, NY (1994-1995); The Manor Studios, Oxford, England (1994-1995); Townhouse Studios, London, England (1994-1995).

Director: Dolores O'Riordan.

Photographer: Andy Earl.

Building off the success of their debut EVERYBODY ELSE IS DOING IT, SO WHY CAN'T WE?, the Cranberries' second album NO NEED TO ARGUE offers more of the Cranberries' brand of lavish pop. Chock full of the haunting atmospheric vocals that propelled the Irish quartet into international stardom, NO NEED TO ARGUE continues the Cranberries' tradition of moving orchestral pop.

Dolores O'Riordan's delicate acoustic arrangements, ethereal lyrics and unique phrasing find the Cranberries' sound akin to contemporary shoegazers like The Cranes or Frente!. It's O'Riordan's dedication to portraying life in war-torn Ireland, though, that sets her apart from her contemporaries.

In the gripping "Ode To My Family," O'Riordan repeatedly asks, "does anyone care?" and the effect is devastating. "Ode To My Family" becomes a snapshot of children playing in the Belfast rubble, and NO NEED TO ARGUE is the audio accompaniment.

With their surprise success behind them, the Cranberries went ahead and essentially created a sequel to Everybody Else Is Doing It, So Why Can't We with only tiny variations, with mixed results. The fact that the album is essentially a redo of previously established stylistic ground isn't apparent in just the production, handled again by Stephen Street, or the overall sound, or even that one particularly fine song is called "Dreaming My Dreams." Everybody wasn't a laugh riot, to be sure, but No Need to Argue starts to see O'Riordan take a more commanding and unfortunately much more self-conscious role that ended up not standing the band in good stead later. Lead single "Zombie" is the worst offender in this regard -- the heavy rock trudge isn't immediately suited for the band's strengths (notably, O'Riordan wrote this without Noel Hogan) -- while the subject matter -- the continuing Northern Ireland tensions -- ends up sounding trivialized. Opening cut "Ode to My Family" is actually one of the band's best, with a lovely string arrangement created by O'Riordan, but her overdubbed vocals start showing her distinct vocal tics becoming a bit more gimmicky at the expense of the performance. Where No Need succeeds best is when the Cranberries stick at what they know, resulting in a number of charmers like "Twenty One," the uilleann pipes-touched "Daffodil's Lament," which has an epic sweep that doesn't overbear like "Zombie," and the evocative "Disappointment." [No Need to Argue: The Complete Sessions adds the Carpenters cover "(They Long to Be) Close to You," a remix of "Zombie," and a bonus track, "So Cold in Ireland."] ~ Ned Raggett

Spin (11/94, pp.94-95) - Recommended - "...unlike its sub-genre contemporaries, the group could take its atmospherics and make songs out of them..."

Q (11/94, p.106) - 4 Stars - Excellent - "...The Cranberries write traditional but timeless songs...Cranberry charms emerge slowly but reliably. They are a fine group and this is a fine record..."

Melody Maker (10/8/94, p.36) - Recommended - "...what is of significance is that the Cranberries have managed to negotiate this fateful journey through fame with their golden sparkle, their precious alien integrity, beautifully intact..."

Musician (11/94, p.86) - "...it's a fine operatic trapeze act, full of pluck and some genuine Sinead O'Connor-school acumen..."