The Northstar Session “Late Bloomer”
The Northstar Session are a SoCal rock band where you hear echos of the past, but it doesn’t slavishly imitate them. Opening with the ear candy of the title track, it brings to mind The Autumn Defense but with a bit more polish. A great standout is the hook laden “In Time” with a great power chords between each verse as it reaches a crescendo.  And these guys still rock out a la Faces on “Turn You Around” with a simple backbeat, and blues guitar riff.

We get some nice group harmonies and jazzy licks on “Love Won’t Keep Them Apart,” and it’s a bit like The Black Crowes doing Van Morrison. Many of the tracks are slow moving mid-tempo soft rockers, like “Who You Were,” so fans of Wilco and The Fleet Foxes will enjoy this album for sure. Solid musicianship here as well. After all, you don’t get an appearance on NBC’s  “Parenthood” by slumming around.

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Justin Nault “It’s Just Me”
Justin Nault is an up and coming entertainer living in Nashville, TN. The bouncy piano opens things up on “I Would” and it proves Justin has the talent and vocal skills to make it. The songs melody line is a bit like The Rembrandts, but with a modern twist. “Addicted” follows through with a nice hook and smooth harmonies in the chorus. A signature tune here is the title track, a nicely written but sparely composed theme, with a sweet harmonic outro.

The albums second half is okay, but doesn’t distinguish itself as the guitar lead “Walk Away” sound pretty generic. “Puppet” brings back the piano lead, and Justin seems most comfortable here. Justin is also lead singer for the band Cougar Petting Zoo. Overall, an impressive debut from a young man with a bright future.

Brent Cash had such a wonderful debut, so expectations are high for this follow up. The album opens with a lush orchestral overture on “I Wish I Were A Song,” and it’s where Brent’s light vocals harmonize with a crew of background singers. The song is over five minutes long and the arrangement is very reminiscent of The Carpenters. That prolific early 70’s feel is even more pronounced on “It’s Easier Without Her” as the horns highlight a male/female duet here.

Next we get an bass-lead instrumental that resembles Mike Post with a bit of Curtis Mayfield brass. It’s so retro you can hear the afros and polyester suits fly out of your speakers. Another standout is “Just Like Today” where the tinkling keys are similar to The Free Design. The beautiful Bacharach-ian “Where Do All The Raindrops Go” is likely the albums most memorable tune. The only problem here is that Brent seems so buried in period technique, and after a few more tunes the nostalgia wears off. The songs themselves are decent, but the hooks are deeply buried here and aside from a few standouts it may only appeal to pop fans with fond memories of that era. Otherwise, it’s a thick slice of sophisticated pop indulgence.

Bowling For Soup started out as a group of snot-nosed young ‘uns doing punky power pop anthems like “1985,” which compares to the Fountains of Wayne classic “Stacy’s Mom” from way back in 2003. The band has always been about rambunctious fun, never taking itself seriously.

The band knows all the ingredients needed for a pop hit, and “S-S-S-Saturday” comes pretty darn close. It’s got the required riffs and hooks that will have you singing along. But on other tracks, it starts to resemble self-parody, as I really thought “Here’s Your Freakin Song” was something from Weird Al Yankovic. Other tracks seem to follow the formula, but without a musical hook in the chorus it tends to be forgettable, like “Girls In America.”

The problem here may be a lack of any kind of musical growth. It seems these guys have fallen into the same trap as Smash Mouth, doling out disposable pop for the fan base, content that they are good at what they do. The trick is how to keep things exciting without growing stale, and they hint at this with “Turbulence.” The band just needs to start singing about what’s relevant to its life instead of trying to market to Disney’s core audience. But despite this, fans will enjoy “Fishin’ For Woos,” and if you’re looking for a summer party soundtrack, it fits the bill perfectly.

Article first published as Music Review: Bowling For Soup – Fishin’ For Woos on Blogcritics.

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