Review: The Break and Repair Method "Milk The Bee"

Fans of modern rock kings matchbox twenty may already recognize the name Paul Doucette. "Milk the Bee" is his first solo effort, released as a side project under the moniker The Break And Repair Method. One of the big fears when something like this happens is that the splinter is identical to the wood it came from, except that it hurts. But thankfully this is not the case with The Break and Repair Method - in fact, Paul was thinking 'outside the matchbox' when he sat down to write the songs that would find their way onto this fine debut.

Paul writes, sings, and plays virtually everything on the record - who knew there was this much talent behind Rob Thomas' shadow? Vocally, he sounds a little like Jason Wade from Lifehouse - generally smooth, which blends nicely with the pop sounds, but it also packs a grainy punch to kick it up when the emotions of the song call for it. There is also an abundance of talent that flew in to help "Milk The Bee", including Nina Gordon (Veruca Salt), Tracy Bonham, Moon Zappa, and Roger Manning (Jellyfish).

My favorite track is a tune reflecting on the birth of Paul's daughter, “Now We Become Part of It”, which any father would relate to with a smile; the song gets increasingly melodic as it goes on, driven by a beautiful piano line and steadily rising climax, and ending with some playfully appropriate toy piano. This is the kind of deep thinking that permeates every song Paul penned and crafted for this record. Other standouts include the opener, "This City (Is Bound to Do Us In)" (the city probably being Baghdad), unique in that it is a bouncy and jovial tune with dark lyrics about life on the battleground. Similarly, the upbeat love song “You Won’t Be Able To Be Sad” is probably the happiest music set to lyrics of disappointment and expectations unmet.

The Break and Repair Method will appeal to fans of Rhett Miller, Pete Yorn, Todd Herfindal (Meadows), and the like. "Milk the Bee" is stuffed with poignant pop songs, thoughtful lyrics, and sticky melodies that will buzz around in your head for days - milk it for all its worth.

iPOD-worthy: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 9, 10

The Break and Repair Method on MySpace. Official site.

Check out the video for "You Won't Be Able To Be Sad":