Fountains Of Wayne
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THE REVIEW

The power pop is "a subgenre of pop-rock, characterized by the use of simple and essential melodies inspired by 60s groups, combined with powerful guitar riffs and a rhythmic structure typical of hard rock" (Wikipedia).

The genre is therefore closely related to britpop, which brought much success to bands like Oasis, Verve, Blur, and others; if you consider that the term was coined by none other than Pete Townshend, the connection becomes even stronger. Essentially, power pop is britpop played by bands that are not English: this is the case with the Americans Fountains of Wayne, from Williamstown, Massachusetts. The band led by singer and guitarist Chris Collingwood, after an excellent debut album ("Fountains of Wayne") followed by a second work dated 1996 ("Utopia Parkway") that did not fully meet expectations, arrives in great shape with their third album, the one of maturity.

Already from the open track "Mexican wine", which talks about indecision resolved every evening by gulping down Mexican wine, one can sense the intention of the two songwriters, Collingwood and bassist Adam Schlesinger (author of the song "That thing you do", a hit from the film "Music Graffiti" with Tom Hanks, if anyone is interested) to create immediately engaging pop-rock songs. But, unlike the band's previous album, the creative vein seems to be rediscovered, as well as the catchy melodies of songs like "Radiation vibe" or "Sink to the bottom", from the first album, while the lyrics continue to be the strength of the two composers.

The second song, the amusing "Bright future in sales", should have been the first single if it weren't for the swear word shouted in the chorus ("I’m gonna get my shit together") that made it disliked by many radios, and so the role of the first single went to "Stacy’s mom", and given the resounding success of the song, perhaps it's for the best. Musically inspired by the Cars and extremely catchy thanks to the vocal harmonies of Schlesinger and guitarist Jody Porter, "Stacy’s mom" narrates the fantasies of a teenager about his friend's mother (a MILF for fans of "American pie"). It continues with the poignant ballad "Hackensack", one of the best on the album, and with "No better place", a homage to New York with vocals by singer Jen Trynin. "Valley winter song" is one of those songs to be framed, where everything is in place, perfect for those winter evenings when you can't go out because of the cold and the only place to be is under the covers. The intimate vein of the album, quite rare for a group like Fountains of Wayne, reaches its peak with "All kinds of time", a kind of "Nino, don't be afraid to kick a penalty" but aimed at football, telling what happens in the mind of a young quarterback about to make the decisive pass.

The overly Oasis-like "Little red light" foreshadows the acoustic guitars of "Hey Julie", the third single after "Stacy’s mom" and "Mexican wine". The story is classic: my job sucks, my boss is a jerk and dresses horribly, but thankfully you’re here to save me. However, the melody is irresistible.

At this point, after nine songs of high level both musically and lyrically, it would have been wiser to stop: the ballads "Halley’s waitress" and "Fire island" add nothing of interest to what has already been said, as do Chris Collingwood's attempts at ‘Gallagherization’ in "Bought for a song" and "Supercollider" or the unfulfilled experiment of a beach hit "Peace and love". They recover when Collingwood and Schlesinger decide to engage in pure country-rock, nodding to the Eagles with "Hung up on you", led by the steel guitar of guest Robert Randolph. The one-minute slow "Yours and mine" closes an excellent album, a collection of stories and characters told with the unmistakable style of the Collingwood-Schlesinger duo and played by one of the "best pop-rock bands that went almost unnoticed" in recent years.