The Skies of America hail from California. Shine is their debut album. Their website (www.theskysofamerica.com) describes their sound as “melodic rock n’ roll” – in this, they are one-third correct because it is melodic.
Songs like the opening “Move” and “The Darkest Night”, recall the expansive, sweeping sound of Adam & Eve-era Catherine Wheel. While slickly produced however, it lacks the passion and sincerity of Rob Dickinson’s much-missed troupe.
“She’s The Kind” and “Shine” are the best two original songs here. Both have decent melodies and some semblance of a rock riff, but offer nothing in the way of originality. They just turn up; shrug their shoulders and leave, whereas music should be slapping you in the face for some reason. There is no excuse for mediocrity.
The McCartney cover version “Come and Get It” is the most convincingly delivered song on the album and their original song “Get Up, Get On” is delivered with similar feeling. There are signs that there is a decent rock band struggling to deviate from the middle of the road.
But that is the main problem. Although the band sounds quite tight, there is nothing here to truly hold the attention of the listener. I do not know if the band are purposely chasing the almighty dollar, but it seems the band are not being allowed to push themselves creatively. Perhaps this is because head-honcho Rob Bonfiglio not only writes all the songs, but also co-produced the album.
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Listening to this, I was thinking that it is exactly the kind of unremarkable, unchallenging background “muzak” that would soundtrack The OC or Dawson’s Creek. It therefore came as no surprise to learn that T.S.O.A.’s music has made a number of appearances on the unfeasibly popular TV show Laguna Beach.
The last song on offer is called “Here We Are” and it’s fortunate that they remind you because otherwise you would forget you were even listening to music. If ever a band warranted use of the words “safe”, “predictable” and above all, “average”, T.S.O.A. are it.
This band offers nothing new but will probably be big in America one day...
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