The Fray
Reason

Revealing oneself to the general public through a TV show's soundtrack could be a dangerous move. Anyone might rightfully think that this is yet another fleeting pop phenomenon destined to last little more than a year, to return when the moment is right and then vanish into nothing; it wouldn't be the first time.

Not that The Fray are the new Radiohead, let's be clear. And yet, with "How to Save a Life," the American band already gave me the impression of juggling between the desire to make good pop music and securing a nice spot on the charts at the same time. They have achieved the latter, the former a bit less, as the album contains potentially good tracks that get lost in an overall insecure work.

Before their debut made famous by "Grey's Anatomy," The Fray had already taken their first steps in the music industry, also gaining some fame in their home country. The reference is to this EP "Reason," which came after "Movement," a collection of four songs released in a very limited run. The impact suggests not to discard "Reason" outright, since the opener "Together" seems far enough from the worst part of "How to Save a Life," the obligation to delve into a dense cloud of sappiness and sweetness to find the pop. Moreover, the "muses" of the Denver group, like Counting Crows, Keane, and Travis, are reaffirmed. All the songs flow as potential singles without pretending to be anything other than radio hits, all centered on instrumental simplicity with guitar and piano in the foreground.

The best results are certainly achieved with "Without Reason," a classic pop-rock ballad that knows how to be intimate without exaggerating, and "Oceans Away," which can be placed along the same lines as the previous one, both enhanced by Isaac Slade's voice, who avoids attempting acrobatics beyond his reach, and a good instrumental performance. With "Unsaid," the piano disappears for the creation of a piece with just guitar and voice that reaches a good compositional level, obviously within the limits of possibility for a debut group. The lyrics tackle themes of daily life and do not attempt existential parables that would appear ridiculous, although some drown in complete banality. Also present in the band's second effort is "Vienna," a beautiful song retrieved for the first proper album and, not by chance, is one of the best.

This is not to portray The Fray as an alternative group from whom we expect a landslide of innovations in the future. However, it would be unfair to set them aside based on a hasty judgment or a wrong impression that would associate them with many other American groups, from the pop-rock-trash veterans Bon Jovi to the unlistenable Switchfoot, clones of each other and pursuers of commercial success; in short, the usual fuss that one gets tired of repeating. "Reason" remains a delightful, relaxing, disengaged EP. Certainly, it's pointless to approach it with the expectation of finding the illegitimate children of Bacharach or with the prejudice of finding half an hour of nothingness.

Ultimately, it deserves a bit of our attention...