{|Silver Sun|}'s debut album was filled with sunny harmonies that sounded like {|The Beach Boys|} cross-bred with {|Cheap Trick|}, and despite the novelty value of that combination, the songs worked. Getting it to work again, however, is more difficu... Read more

{|Silver Sun|}'s debut album was filled with sunny harmonies that sounded like {|The Beach Boys|} cross-bred with {|Cheap Trick|}, and despite the novelty value of that combination, the songs worked. Getting it to work again, however, is more difficult. With {|Neo Wave|}, {|Silver Sun|} have created a disc that is a blatant throwback to mid-70s power-pop (see the {|Cheap Trick|} lyrical reference on {|Mustard|}: Don't try this at home kids, it's a cheap Cheap Trick) and while at times the formula works, it often falls flat. Some songs, such as {|I'll See You Around|} and {|Would've If I Could've|} recall the exuberance of the debut, but the album is weighed down with several shoddy ballads and one pointless instrumental as well as a lot of needless filler. When they hit the mark, such as they do a few times on this album, {|Silver Sun|} is great late '90s power pop. When they miss, as they do on much of this album, the result is at best embarrassing. ~ Jason Damas Less