The Start - Shakedown

Dear The Start- When I first got my hands on your album I was hopeful: Strange looking band, good quote explaining logo, funky lead singer named Aimee Echo- It was all there. Your album would be good, you would be someone I could root for. Not so, sadly. The production was great, thus the ".3" on my rating. You show promise... But your album did nothing for me. Filled with vague "dear diary" lyrics and a sound that ranged from distilled Tori Amos to downright Thomas Dolby, the sound was not unique, not honed, just dirty poor turned imitation. Sure, "Communion" had some clout as the bastard child of Cyndi Lauper and NIN, and "Glimmer Man" was a koan to John Hughes films, but the peaks of this album could be best put to use only as filler between beach scenes in a Britney Spears movie. I listened to your album for about a week, waiting for it to catch me or grow on me, but it was barely interesting enough for me to write a decent review. Your standout track, the only one on the whole album that sounded like it had been fine tuned, was the last track "Time." Great tempo on that song- Can you make more like that? I'm sorry it had to be this way, Start, because I honestly tried to like you. But maybe this will encourage you to utilize some of that carefully hidden talent that you may or may not posess into something good, unique, and dynamite. Until then, you get the not-so-coveted rating (above), which I only gave to you because your liner notes mentioned so many of the bands that I like, and I don't want to piss them off. Your Pal, Erun [www.thestart.com]