Title Tracks

John Davis needs a sound to call his own. Once one of the more innovative drummers around, Davis has gone from being Picciotto-inspired to a full-fledged Elvis Costello impersonator. In Blank succeeds as an album of brief, sugary power pop songs, and though there's nothing musically wrong with it, there's definitely something missing. The album is formulaic to a fault and whether it's the by-the-numbers song structures or the exaggeratedly thin production, it comes off like it's begging for comparisons. In that respect, it succeeds ― these songs are certainly reminiscent of the '70s radio hits they so desperately seek to recreate, but where's the satisfaction in obvious comparisons? In Blank works as a malt shop throwback album for the summertime, but outside of "Light Sleepers" and "Forget the Ghost," these songs don't have enough to stand up to repeated listens.