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The Alternative To Love Review

The Alternative To Love Overview

At the beginning of "Feel Like Myself", the third track on Alternative to Love, Brendan Benson sings, "You'll be sorry the next time you see me." It's almost like he's predicting the critics, many of whom will judge this album on what it is not--namely, in the same league as his previous album, Lapalco, one of the most perfect power-pop albums ever. It was always going to be a hard act to follow, particularly as that album by no means made Benson a superstar. So you can't blame him for not trying as hard on Alternative to Love. Benson is a talented singer-songwriter, and he should be admired at the very least for never wallowing in the acoustic twaddle that marks so many of his contemporaries. His canny ear for a tune is still present, as heard on "Spit It Out", or the Phil Spector tribute that is "The Pledge" (complete with echoing drums and bells). But the tone of Alternative to Love is less playful, more introspective and occasionally more bitter than its predecessor. Judged as an example of American power-pop, it's really very good. Brendan Benson will just have to work that much harder to get out of Lapalco's shadow. --Robert Burrow

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