Those who are aching to hear vocal harmonies again minus studio excess will immediately fall for Imaginary Friends. Frontwomen Stacy Robin and Donna Rawlins trade off their crystal-clean and melodic singing styles throughout much of "Fragile Illusion," and it's sweet fruit to the ears.
Mellow, good-natured, and eclectic, Imaginary Friends produce pop music without artificial ingredients, letting the winsome singing carry the hooks, especially effective on "Wicked Ways" and "Burnin Down," the latter with a sweeping chorus that sticks in the ear.
While there are dashes of country (best on "Comes Around"), this is '70s-styled acoustic pop/rock that is about as far from MTV fodder as you can get. And considering the mess that MTV has become, that's a huge compliment. There are a number of utterly gorgeous moments on this disc, especially the spring sun prettiness of Robin and Rawlins' harmonizing on "Turn Around."
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This is impeccable adult soft rock as Robin and Rawlins reel off one toe-tapping line after another to some of the most tastefully propulsive guitar riffs you'll hear this year.
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