When Paul Weller left The Jam to form Style Council he sacrificed power-punk energy for a watered down white man's soul. A disastrous move in my book, although he's since salvaged his repution with some half way decent solo albums.
Maryland's David Andrew Smith is more Style Council than Jam. He looks like a decent guy, has got a good voice and plays guitar (acoustic & electric) ably.
The problem is that the half dozen love songs on this mini album simply don't have enough vitality. It sounds to me as if they are deliberately pitched to appeal to the mainstream market with all the attendent compromises this level of accessability demands.
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The pedal steel on 'So Much Has Changed' gives a welcome country feel to the polished pop/rock sound but on the other tracks the predictable guitar solos add little. So much so that I couldn't help thinking that these songs would sound far better stripped down and unplugged.
The album strikes a few rock poses but this doesn't mask the fact that it is safety first, easy listening all the way.
6t 21.08
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