Former
Beets
frontman
Juan Wauters
' second full-length
Who Me?
was recorded in two weeks in autumn 2014, and feels slightly more polished and cohesive than his solo debut,
NAP: North American Poetry
, which was recorded over the course of several sessions between 2010 and 2012. Like his debut,
finds
Wauters
continuing to hone his songwriting skills through
Velvet Underground
-inspired indie rock, which is more acoustic and folk-leaning than the garage rock of his previous band. Musically, his songs seem pleasant and easygoing, but his lyrics point toward uncertainty and self-doubt, with the brief "Misbehave" asking "why do I choose wrong?" Similarly, "I'm All Wrong" has a catchy, feel-good rhythm aided by handclaps, and the song even dissolves into applause at the end, but
returns to the refrain "and I don't care if you know that I'm all wrong." "She Might Get Shot" has such a gentle rhythm that it might be easy to overlook the uneasiness of some of the lyrics, especially given the applause and light-hearted monologue that end the song. The album succeeds most during more fully arranged songs such as "Grey Matter" and "Todo Termino," where the poppy melodies serve as a foil to the worrisome lyrics. In a surprising turn, the album's most lo-fi moments come during the amusingly amateur raps that close out the album, during which
nods to
LL Cool J
. Like its predecessor,
is a showcase for
' quirky, likeable personality, and balances introspective lyrics with laid-back instrumentation. [
was also released on LP.] ~ Paul Simpson