Joey Ryan and the InksWell, Here We Are Then
B
B
Well, Here We Are Then, the debut album of Minnesota-based band Joey Ryan and the Inks, may have been more appropriately spawned from a beach town on the West coast than the wintry plains of the Midwest. With harmonies sung in the fashion of the Beach Boys and a certain warmness reminiscent of the Shins (or maybe its just the vague similarity between the vocals of Joey Ryan and James Mercer), Well, Here We Are Then is a heartening 40 minutes of buoyant melodies and staccato guitar strokes.
While each song has its own charm, the album as a whole may be too uniformly sunny for its own good; it's catchy, it's interesting, but it falls just short of memorable. "Don't Look back On Your Own," begins with Joey Ryan crooning promisingly over a few soft strums of the guitar, then transitions into an upbeat song that sets the tone for the rest of the album. Well Here We Are Then reaches its high point with "Spitting in Tune," a song whose innocent, airy melody lends it an inviting sound that seems to bring together the most prominent elements of the album in a cohesive way. While Joey Ryan and the Inks demonstrate high potential through Well, here We Are Then, it lacks a certain depth and diversity of sound that in time they may well be capable of developing.
Best tracks: "Oh, Caroline," "Spitting in Tune," "You Are All Friends of Mine"
-- Bri Dorgan
While each song has its own charm, the album as a whole may be too uniformly sunny for its own good; it's catchy, it's interesting, but it falls just short of memorable. "Don't Look back On Your Own," begins with Joey Ryan crooning promisingly over a few soft strums of the guitar, then transitions into an upbeat song that sets the tone for the rest of the album. Well Here We Are Then reaches its high point with "Spitting in Tune," a song whose innocent, airy melody lends it an inviting sound that seems to bring together the most prominent elements of the album in a cohesive way. While Joey Ryan and the Inks demonstrate high potential through Well, here We Are Then, it lacks a certain depth and diversity of sound that in time they may well be capable of developing.
Best tracks: "Oh, Caroline," "Spitting in Tune," "You Are All Friends of Mine"
-- Bri Dorgan
1 comment:
I disagree. Each song has a different vibe to it and, while the melodies and harmonies are often simple, that's what makes it easy to listen to over and over. Classic simplicity but with a unique new slant.
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