The Magic Numbers
Those The Brokes

THE REVIEW

MAGIC NUMBERS - THOSE THE BROKES
sugary yawns

One of the qualities that a review writer, a "scribe," should possess is sincerity. Unfortunately, objectivity is somewhat of a utopia when dealing with other sentiments such as affection or prejudice.

Sometimes I've let myself be swayed by affection, and haven't been very honest; other times I've been excessively "brutal," which happens when you are let down by a beloved artist. The Magic Numbers do not fall into this category, so I can be honest without feeling guilty.

I really appreciated the first album by this mixed quartet; there were great melodies, splendid duets, danceable rhythms, and pleasant ballads. They were quite successful in 2004 -I believe- and have rightly thought to replicate the formula without changing a comma, not even a note, and without the inspiration. The result? A monotonous and repetitive album to the point of dullness. The choruses now make even genre lovers yawn, the sound is stale sugar like the pseudosentimental voices; the songs are carbon copies of each other, and with the addition of strings ("Boy") and r'n'b influences ("Undecided"), they deceive themselves. The lyrics and singing style wouldn't make even high school sweethearts dream, so deeply do they sink into the most banal pop syrup. Sure, the production is clean and polished, but today music can't just be about that since it's the basic requirement (clearly reversible if there's genius and creativity behind it).

The first album had something original and exciting; in this one, however, the Magic Numbers -where the magic is only they know- lean too much on slow rhythms and even a few final jolts ("Runnin' Out") or the typical goodnight poetry closure ("Goodnight") cannot save it from general boredom.

What's worse than a fake and constructed "commercial" album? A pretentious and constructed "alternative" album! Is it worth getting upset over a useless and lifeless album? No, but these are points of view, so if you really care, listen to it and form your own opinion.