My Old, Familiar Friend
Album | Brendan Benson
Benson plows admirably ahead with the kind of post-Jellyfish power pop he’d purveyed from the beginning.
In 2005, Brendan Benson was a power-pop singer/songwriter whose three albums had achieved that classic combination of critical acclaim and underwhelming sales, never coming within spitting distance of the charts. There would have been no reason for him to expect anything beyond cult-hero status from the rest of his career. But just after the release of third album Alternative to Love, he began casually collaborating with White Stripes frontman Jack White. The next thing you know, he was a Top 10 denizen and Grammy nominee with supergroup The Raconteurs.
Back on Earth, otherwise known as Benson's solo career, My Old, Familiar Friend, his first post-Raconteurs album, contains no superstar cameos or overt mainstream moves. Despite his increased visibility and (presumably) elevated expectations, Benson plows admirably ahead with the kind of post-Jellyfish power pop he'd purveyed from the beginning. Razor-sharp guitar and keyboard hooks, rich, creamy vocal harmonies, and whip-smart songcraft are what the album is all about. And while the once and future (?) Raconteur's heightened profile may mean a bit more cash-register clang this time around, he seems happily destined to remain "our" Brendan Benson.
-
Music Review
Change Everything
Del Amitri -
Music Review
Dear 23
The Posies -
Music Review
Girlfriend
Matthew Sweet -
Music Review
Ro Sham Bo
The Grays -
Music Review
Welcome Interstate Managers
Fountains of Wayne
-
Music Profile
Ashley Monroe Country Singer
-
Music Profile
Gil Norton Producer
-
Music Profile
Jason Falkner Singer, Songwriter, Producer
-
Music Profile
Jon Brion Producer, Musician
-
Music Profile
Queens of the Stone Age Music Group
-
Music Profile
The Byrds Inventors of Jangle Pop
By Stewart MasonIconic, yet somehow still underrated.
>>
-
Music Profile
Cheap Trick Music Group
-
Music Profile
Electric Light Orchestra Music Group
-
Music Profile
Elvis Costello Seminal New Wave Super Star and Singer-Songwriter
-
Music Profile
Jellyfish Music Group
-
Music Profile
New Wave Music Genre
-
Music Profile
The Grays Music Group
