The Way We Are
The Way We Are, the sophomore release by Nashville, Tennessee, pop-rockers Fleming and John shows that the quirky, infectious energy of their debut record,Delusions of Grandeur, was no fluke. In fact,The Way We Areis even grander, a gloriously overproduced pop epic. Vocalist Fleming McWilliams's voice soars from a waifish whisper to aJoplin-esque wail to operatic diva, often in the same song. Multi-instrumentalist John Painter assembles a dizzying palette of sounds, from buzzy, riff-heavy guitars to horns, accordion, Middle Eastern percussion, and theremin, which yields a general sense of weirdness--all set in a perfectly pop context--while the Love Sponge String Quartet add sonic depth and aVan Dyke Parksquality to several arrangements. The album gravitates to happy love songs, then to sad love songs, striking an emotional balance between contentment and melancholy with a sense of humor that never dips into sappiness. All this combines with impeccable pop-rock production for a record that is bottomless with potential hits.--Bradley S. Caviness