Time and Jean - Like What

Mon 30th May, 2011 in Music Reviews

The title of the album should indicate the level of artistic maturity you can expect from Tim and Jean’s debut album, Like What. Sure, it’s filled to the brim with accessible pop songs that belong to Top 40 stations, but the lack of sophistication in every song (not to mention a lack of any kind of diversity) makes this album a forgettable experience. The entire album clocks in at less than 40 minutes and each song feels like a trip inside a synthesiser theme park, but one that makes you feel a little queasy afterwards. That said, the boys were in their teens when they produced this album, and so there is only room for the boys to grow into a formidable pop force.

Title track Like What takes you by the hand into a pop-synth paradise. The vocals are laced with lots of reverb and other effects during the chorus, which isn’t strange in this day and age. Does anyone else remember how nice it was when pop songs relied heavily on singing ability? Well, don’t expect any vocal runs on this album.

Veronika has shades of last year’s Gypsy and the Cat tune Jona Vark, but Tim and Jean fail to deliver anything of similar quality. What is surely destined for Austereo greatness is I Can Show You – a true pop song that throws back to 80s pop with a catchy chorus and wicked backing. Harmonised vocals and a catchy beat make this one of the few songs that should charm most listeners. It’s hard not to be enamoured by the vanilla flavour of this tune (in that it’s so easy to swallow).

Come Around and Solina both try and keep the mood light, but all the songs begin to sound a little similar at this point. Don’t Stop has much cooler backing than Solina, but feels undeveloped. The electric guitar adds an 80s pop-rock feel, but the singing sounds washed out, and there isn’t anything redeemable about a pop song you can’t sing along to.

Those wanting a cover of Toto’s Africa will disappointed with Tim and Jean’s Afrika. While the vocals are more present than other tracks, words like “She’s so hot and she knows exactly what to do,” doesn’t challenge any singer-songwriters out there. Souls shows off even more hackneyed lyrics, such as, “I don’t need to show you how I feel if you already know.” To their credit, Tim and Jean pull of a killer keyboard/keytar solo (that is unforgivably short) and the only redeemable thing about this song. By the time you get to last track Hustle, you’ll be diabetic from the keyboard heavy songs and the sugary vocals, but for some it’ll be a high while for others it’ll be just way too much.