Robb Benson continues the musical journey started by “Held By Waits” in 2007. Produced by Johnny Sangster (Tripwires, Mudhoney, The Posies) who plays on several tracks, it is more DIY indie pop than the last one. Starting with “The Nice Sleep” it brings guitar melodies and supporting keyboards to the front, and recalls The New Pornographers or Zumpano. Benson’s vocals are consistent throughout the album, but he seems to get angrier as the album progresses . “Tuning Out” feels like a bit of Coldplay and Decemberists influence has leaked through. The lyrics are in it’s own way, abstract and looking at things from a different perspective, as our pace of life seems to move faster each day. But then I felt the music loses its way, with “Houses with Holes” concentrating on rhythms instead of melody – although the song’s message is dead on. There are bright spots like the bouncy “Josephine” dripping with anger about a clingy girlfriend where “personal space should not be breached.” This excellent song brings to mind Jet and Dashboard Confessional, with buzzing guitars and organ solos in the break. The title track is another good instrumental jam, but melodic tendencies get buried on the rant “Mind over Matter” where a frustrated Robb screams “…what if Matter wins?” I had to listen to this album several times and although the instrumentation was excellent, the hooks are lacking here. To be fair, I’m sure some fans will like this better than I did.
Listen to “Faster”