Plain White T's - Every Second Counts

When listening to this album, I caught myself wondering, what is it that really gives a band saying power? The Plain White T’s began their journey in high school, honing their pop skills for nearly a decade before breaking with their fourth album Every Second Counts. They almost immediately made a name for themselves as the “new darlings of pop-punk” and they haven’t slowed since. Their label is probably quite happy for the cash cow they promise to be…having turned this title into a hefty following with (a guess…but their Myspace site would indicate) the bubblegum crowd. But back to the music…well, for all the hype, the seasoned music fan will probably find this album falling a bit short. There really isn’t anything unique about the Plain White T’s music (think Fall Out Boy), But man, do these guys know pop music formula. If you look at this collection from a Top 40 perspective, thanks largely to the writing of Tom Higgenson, there isn’t a dud in the bunch. The melodies are spot-on catchy and the lyrics are sweet, fun-loving, and not-at-all deep (if not somewhat predictable), and it is the combination of these elements that usually indicates that someone has the ability to stick around for year. And that is fine if that is the goal. But today when there is so little diversity in everything that makes it to music video or radio, well, it just seems that the audience they play to will be craving something more before too long. Perhaps, though, I don’t give the band enough credit and the fans too much, for what makes it in music pretty much always follows a relatively predictable line, and the band could go just about any direction and probably succeed with writing talent and what they have already exhibited they can do. Oh and potential, desire for growth, yadda, yadda… So, that should give you a pretty good idea of whether this absolutely belongs in your collection, or unequivocally does not, but at the very least, the Plain White T’s are certainly worth a listen. For it is likely that they have built a pretty strong foundation for becoming a Top-40 mainstay for years to come. And who knows? That said, at the very least some day it may provide you and your children with invaluable bonding material. [www.plainwhitets.com]