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Rating: Sometimes it's nice to get lost in sweetness, but in that sweetness that doesn't stick, that doesn't distract you from reality, that doesn't bore you.
This is the case of “American Town,” the debut album by the American band 'Five For Fighting'. Simplicity and sweetness are the first things that come to mind when listening to this album. This is exemplified by the opening track “Easy Tonight” which combines a simple and immediate melody with the singer's sweet voice. Even the second track “Bloody Mary” features a melody that surprises upon the first listen and immediately sticks in your mind without becoming tiresome. Surely, songs like these could easily be successful singles for one of the many brit-pop bands that now populate our networks.
What saves FFF is precisely the ”Americanity” that emerges from the band's sound and prevents the album in question from slipping into the basket of cute-but-nothing-special brit-pop albums (sometimes being American is not necessarily a bad thing, indeed, it's worth remembering that America is not just George W. Bush). The singles released from this album are, in fact, truly noteworthy: “Superman (it’s not easy)” and “Something About You” which at the time enjoyed good success, largely due to extensive television use. Particularly the first single is, in my opinion, one of the most beautiful songs of recent years; certainly, there is no experimentation, no innovation but pure simplicity and immediate sweetness that, sometimes and in the right doses, never spoil…
Of course, it's not a masterpiece also because in the long run, the band's sound can become a bit monotonous, especially due to the scarcity of more properly rock deviations (the only ones being the claustrophobic “Michael Jordan” and the more classic “Boat Parade”).
“American Town” won't change your life, won't transport you to a parallel universe, won't intoxicate your senses… It will simply keep you company when it rains outside and you feel a bit lonely…
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