Radford debut a piece of cake

By JOSH ZETUMER
Staff Writer

Ever compare pop music and food? Maybe Jewel would be some light, fluffy cotton candy; the Beastie Boys, probably ladkas; and 'NSync, wellŠtripe.

If one were required to make a similar analogy with the rising stars of the Los Angeles-based quartet, Radford, chocolate cake might be the first thing to come to mind.

The band's self-titled debut doesn't ask much from its audience: the sound is nothing new, and there are few unexpected twists, but when it's all over, the listeners will probably leave satisfied and, most likely, in a better mood than before they began. The album sounds like a cross between Live and Oasis (minus the gut-wrenching British accents and "bigger-than-God" attitude), but occasionally dips into the niches created by REM and Radiohead.

Notables songs on the album include "Closer to Myself," a singable rock track with an infectious chorus, and "Stand on the Moon," a slower but equally catchy tune with a driving staccato guitar line. For most of the record, the focus is kept primarily on lead vocalist Johnny Radford Mead, as there is not a whole lot of instrumental deviance from the standard and very commercial 4/4 rock or power ballad feels.

Occasionally, however, the band will break in with a syncopated guitar lick or a well-placed break, but for the most part the album is strictly sell-out-to-get-the-15-year-old-girl-demographic-oriented.

What the future holds for Radford seems a mystery. Does the world really want another pop band that doesn't offer anything but catchy songs and pleasant melodies? Who knows - after all, few people ever really get sick of chocolate cake.

Copyright 2000 by the Daily Trojan. All rights reserved.
This article was published in Vol. 139, No. 62 (Thursday, April 20, 2000), beginning on page 7 and ending on page 9.