Crack open a Pabst Blue Ribbon, untangle yourself from the www, and have a seat in Campbell's Apartment for 40 minutes. You are in for a ride on the quirky pop "train" conducted by Ari Vais. "Insomniac's Almanac" is the latest from Vais, who astute powerpoppers may know from bands Humbert or The Pelicans. Now joined by Dan Haag on bass and Dave Harman on drums, Ari has delivered 13 (no, make that 16 counting the bonus tracks) fresh tracks of goofy pop goodness.
If you dig Fountains of Wayne (with whom The Campbell Apartment is touring), the lighter side of Weezer, or Ween, you should make space in your collection for Ari and Co. They are all these with a piece of Cake, too. Vocally, Ari sounds like a cross between Rivers Cuomo and Jason Falkner (The Grays, Jellyfish). The songs are typically short and to the point - like a good butcher, The Campbell Apartment cuts the fat and just gives you the meat of the song. A great gift for your loved one with A.D.D.
The opening track is a nice introduction to the side of the band showing its love for modern pop luminaries like Fountains of Wayne or the (tragically) short-lived Grays. "dna" is our next stop, which features some delightfully quirky lead guitar and refreshing lyrics; there simply aren't enough songs about nucleotides these days, and I hope to balance it all out, the boys release a song about epigenetics on the next CD. The next highlight for me is the best tune on the record, which has Ari pining for Josh Waller Weinberg's "Wife". It is not in the linear notes, but it sounds like Casper the friendly ghost came in to do the backing vocal, and he did a frightfully good job. "Wife" is a fantastic track with a spooky, but ultra catchy backing vocal hook. In "How To Be Alone", Ari does his best Weezer impression as he laments, "So screw it, I knew it, I lost it and blew it." Who can't relate to that? Another favorite of mine was "Addicted to MySpace", yet another witty tune about the www and the shortcomings of a virtual life. Driven by a hip, bouncy piano riff, this tune will be just as addictive as checking your MySpace profile. And don't overlook listening to the acoustic driven "Sunday Night Blues", which is going to be the new way I prepare for Mondays.
The outstanding feature regarding The Campbell Apartment is the lyrics...they are amusing and smart. Add in the catchy riffs and well done harmonies and you have a band that glorifies their influences while carving out their own niche. If you like a little quirkiness in your pop, you can't let this one get away.
iPOD-worthy: 1, 2, 5, 7, 8, 10
The Campbell Apartment on MySpace.
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