Andrew McMahon, front man of Jack’s Mannequin, knows what a pop song ought to be. Perhaps the use of orchestration, synthesizers, and the occasional glockenspiel mixed into one nearly homogeneous wall of sound might be a turn off for some but in this writer’s opinion, rather than sounding over produced, the effect comes off as being lush. Radio-friendly anthems like the opening track ‘Crashin’ and the last track ‘Miss California’ feature jangly guitars and bright snare-driven rhythms reminiscent of the beginnings of the Indypop movement in the early-mid 90’s. McMahon’s earnest and angst-ridden vocals on slower tracks like ‘Swim’ and ‘Annie Use Your Telescope’ bring a heartfelt warmth layered over these instrumentals that creates a sound so rich you can nearly dive into it. (Particularly appropriate for a song entitled ‘Swim’, yes?)
I feel much more hip and with-it just for having listened to ‘The Glass Passenger.’ (Do we still say ‘hip’ and ‘with-it’?) ‘Passenger’ would serve well as the soundtrack to some neon-soaked Indy flick following the escapades of trendy yet quirky, unrealistically intelligent yet gorgeous young adults surviving in the Big City. The general feel of this collection of songs makes me a bit nostalgic for the inherent drama of that just-post-adolescent age. (Not that I’d realistically ever want to revisit being 19 again, seriously.) Fortunately, giving this record a checking-out won’t actually cause you to travel back in time.
