Travis:
Rating: 7
The Man Who (Sony/Epic)
I can't imagine what
it's like to actually be in Travis. To make music as innocuously
pleasing as theirs is certainly a talent, but how can it be that
rewarding? On their second album, The Man Who, Travis don't
tackle any huge issues, they don't challenge your imagination, and they
certainly don't espouse any political platforms. Listening to this
album, a collection of mid-tempo acoustic-pop ballads, you may find
yourself wondering, Why, exactly, did I buy this?
But then you turn on MTV or something and are subjected to the
Britney/Backstreet take on "pop" music, and you begin to
see that what Travis have done here is pretty special. Each song on
The Man Who positively shimmers with graceful, casual loveliness
. Like so many other guitar-pop tastemakers, Travis flaunt an overt Big
Star influence, with songs like "Luv" and "She's So
Strange" sounding like outtakes from #1 Record. Sure, this
makes for inconsequential music, but someone's gotta make an attempt
to rescue pop from the TRL brink.
This U.S. release of The Man Who features
three unlisted bonus tracks. Of the three, I liked the last one,
with its chirping "Molly, Molly" refrain, the best, mostly
because it reminded me of this pretty girl I know named Molly. Travis
don't pretend to make important art. They just want to play pretty
melodies that make you think about pretty girls and love and luv.
- Matt Bell
your
shot
Think you can do better? Email us your pithy comments on the
cd's and shows we
review, and the lists and essays we write.
We'll publish excerpts in future editions...