Fountains of Wayne have returned and its powerhouse songwriting duo of Chris Collingwood and Adam Schlesinger are in fine form this summer. I cannot name a band that does a better job at mixing descriptive character studies with irresistible melodies. They run out of the gate with “The Summer Place” a delicious theme punctuated by a western-style riff after the chorus. Next comes the hilarious “Richie and Ruben,” a true FOW classic that begs to be sung along to.
The band seems more energized here, they don’t seem to be following any musical trend and are very comfortable in their hook-filled skins. Every song sticks, but exceptional songs included here are “Someone’s Gonna Break Your Heart” and “A Dip In The Ocean” full of fast paced rhythms and the ever shimmering tambourine. It’s hard to argue that this isn’t the best FOW album since the classic Welcome Interstate Managers
very nice song. nice post, carry on. i like it and want more like this.
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Isn't Carlene Carter a country singer? I do agree with you that Moon Martin is an exceptional songwriter and deserves re-discovery. But I stick by my recommendation of FOW.
It is interesting you would question the "power pop" allegiance of someone else – not sure where you stand on the genre, since it seems to hard to find in many of the recent releases you highlight here.
You are right that the word "new" is not all that important in power pop, but there should be some freshness, and FOW is decidedly stale.
The old releases I've checked out recently, particularly a greatest hits CD by Moon Martin, one by Carlene Carter, sound far more contemporary and straight-ahead power pop than the smarmy FOW songs like "Richard and Ruben" – no good, even as pure melody pop. The one you had the video to, good as mindless going-through-the-motion, but certainly no deeper.
And you are welcome to your opinion, but it sounds like you don't even enjoy the genre as a whole, never mind this album. In my opinion, the burden of the power pop artist isn't to come up with something "new" but to work within the basic milieu, that is create catchy melodies and ear pleasing harmonies that stick in your head. In that sense, FOW have done a good job here — and the lyrics have a lot more substance and tell more of a story than Lady Gaga's "Poker Face." If after a few spins you're NOT humming the chorus of "Richie and Ruben" to yourself, I suggest a nice Tom Waits album to go with your serious mood.
In the world of power pop, the burden is always that there is such a basic, strong, simple formula with such an incredible track record of predecessors. Fountains of Wayne flunks mightily with this record in doing its same old with nothing new or substantial, and so it should break up, now.
Fountains of Wayne grew out of Williams College, an extremely expensive college with billions of dollars in endowment. To say that they have produced "rich character studies" in their lyrics is laughable – these are freshman comp toss-off lyrics by aging cynics. Fountains of Wayne have hung on while far better, less overblown bands and musicians like the Rosenbergs and Jellyfish and Wondermints have bitten the power pop dust.
Of course- if you like the ripped-off bubblegum, hey no problem, I just don't like them. Great website, jsut an opinion here.
Thanks Anonymous – finally, someone else hears the cynicism in FOW, which gives their work a nasty undercurrent.
I’d also argue they’re not Power Pop at all, but simply some kind of pop-punk-bubblegum thing. Power Pop always strikes me as a genre that appeals to musicians – it’s all about clever playing, interesting arrangements and flashy parts that make other musicians want to pick up a guitar or bass or keyboard and replicate what they’re hearing. Melody and harmony are only part of the style – i’d also argue Clever Arrangements are a defining part of it.
Then you have FOW, who just seem to strum their first-position power chords through every song. The non-solo guitar playing is rudimentary, and dull. There’s nothing further to explore in the mix once you’re bored of the melody, and the excessive mastering of their CD’s doesn’t help to keep your attention either.
If i sit down at an instrument, I can play from memory the riff of ‘Ticket To Ride’ (Beatles), the opening guitar figures of ‘Password’ (cotton mather), ‘Baby’s Coming Back’ (Jellyfish) and ‘Earn Enough For Us’ (XTC), the harpsichord of ‘Something on my mind’ (The Left Banke) and ‘Cellophane’ (Wondermints). FOW have nothing to offer in that regard, and are far closer to rote Lady Gaga simplicity than you might suspect.
The low energy on display in ‘Richie and Rueben’ shocked me – the band sounds bored.
Very good observation and a valid critique. But I would argue that clever arrangements were always a secondary consideration for FOW. It was always more about character study, i.e. “Leave The Biker” and “Sick Day” — and it sounds to me (based on interviews I read) like Chris C. wanted a more serious album thus the title track is more the direction the band favored.