Smith Westerns - Soft Will

 

After enjoying a couple of festival performances by the SWs, I've decided to give a record a try. And how do they say hello to me? The lyric: "It's easier to think you're dumb". I probably deserve that.

That opener, "3AM Spiritual", is a fine track that hearkens back the poppier elements of Abbey Road. Or for a more obscure reference, but closer to form, an Abbey Road send up album by the band Sloan called "Never Hear The End Of It". (highly recommended).

From that opener though, the band treads into a style that has always bored the shit out of me. That sunshine California pop jangle. All other examples are escaping my head right now, but you've heard it. As if someone took all of REM's Rickenbackers and just made everything sound happy. I mean, there's even a track called "Cheer Up".

And the album never gets out of that rut. A band named after a goddamn gun (ish? right?) should not sound the Archies. Unremarkable is the best that I can come up with. Out of this collection of 10 songs, the opener is okay, and there is a Pink Floyd-ish instrumental track in the middle called "XXIII". Other than those, there is actually nothing where I would be able to distinguish one song from the other. (1.5 of 5 stars)