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Chez Stadium:
Freshman Slump
While the engaging pop melodies and budding songcraft of Randall Payton leave much to be desired, its his voice that is far less intriguing, falling somewhere between bad impressions of Adam Duritz and Ben Folds. Its not his best weapon, but fortunately the music does better takes on early Elvis Costello to salvage this uneven, if not promising, debut. Beginning with the frenetic, heart-pumping Girld Again, Payton shows his affection for songs like No Action and Radio, Radio, singing the standout lyric Its a love, Like arena rock over and over again until it segues perfectly, if not unironically into the wonderful Skynard-esque riff of The Horrible Truth. The comparisons to Costello are not unfounded. Listen to This Years Model, and youll see what I mean. Many of the in-song transitions here seem borrowed, if not equally affecting. In fact, you can almost hear Costello singing these songs. Thats either good or bad news depending on which side youre on. But where Costello could be scathing in his observations, Payton is more of the sensitive, lovesick puppy type who may show his bitterness at times but is more apt to keep the claws hidden. Down With It might be the album highlight, and culmination of its best parts: a playful guitar line, equally playful lyrics and a provocative minor key chorus that serves as a good use of double-meaning, as it obviously ties into the songs theme of love as a sickness; but it also functions as indication of Paytons feelings toward being sick (he secretly likes it). Thats just good writing. On the other hand, hes inconsistent. Liquid King may be his bid for The Replacements Here Comes a Regular, but to hear him sing, I am the Liquid King is to hear him fall short. Its one of the few glaring lyrical shortcomings on the record. Despite this, Payton does have an eclectic taste that he incorporates rather seamlessly into his repertoire. Hes an obvious student of the game. Thats always the sign of an original, since hes certainly on his way to developing his own voice. Hes got a sense of humor, too, which is always good, and he does it without being the smart-ass that Folds is. With time to grow and expand on ideas, he can only improve, but hiring a lead singer (in my humble opinion) should not be out of the question.
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