The Pale Fountains
'
Ian Broudie
-produced second record ditches a couple of the scatterbrained influences of the debut, so it makes for a slightly more consistent listen. Not all of the odd wrinkles are abandoned, though; they still sound as if they are trying too hard to distinguish themselves from the rest of the flock.
The Fountains
' strength lies in folksy pop, but on a few too many occasions, the incessant smoothness and inability to latch onto one style holds them back. Surprisingly, the title track is almost synth-pop, but a smattering of horns makes sure it isn't completely such. On
"September Sting,"
they try their hands at Laurel Canyon country-rock and fall flat on their jumpers. When they want to, they can write finely tuned, sophisticated pop songs that are quite pleasant. Instrumentally,
"Stole the Love"
doesn't sound a great deal different from
the Smiths
.
"Shelter"
and
"Jean's Not Happening"
are fine strummers. Though a decent record and an improvement over the debut,
Kitchen Table
frustrates. They were too anxious to zig or zag when they could have stayed the course. After establishing themselves as a cult band,
the Pale Fountains
eventually broke up, with
Michael Head
forming the similarly cultish
Shack
. ~ Andy Kellman