FFWD Weekly
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| CD REVIEW GOMEZ · The quintet, most of them in their early 20s, cite Tom Waits, Beck, Dr. John, Curtis Mayfield and Neil Young as their influences. · Gomez officially formed in 1996, but prior to that they were teenage metalhead friends. Bring It On - a lofty album title for a band that pumps out an hour of the most passive (albeit enjoyable) ass-kicking ever. The U.K.'s Gomez zig zag from one sorta bluesy song to a sorta Brit pop track with stark black-and-white tag-team alternations. An intriguing and spunky yet dizzying juxtaposition of musical styles, they touch on a little of everything without going too deep. Nice and easy, mellow and comfortable, with as many hooks as there are scratch-your-head quirks. Acoustic guitars with bubbles of electronically synthesized sound effects and bluesy overtones contribute to a mellow, imaginative and impressive mix of two genres. That said, people who are repulsed by Eddie Vedder's vocals should steer clear of this project. Ben Ottewell, one of the four vocalists, sounds like Vedder circa Vs. - and like some of the other '60s and '70s classic rock dinosaurs that the Pearl Jam frontman copies. The other vocalists provide unobtrusive breaks from Ottewell's strained vox and add accessibility to otherwise edgy songs. 3/5 |