Smile Smile: Truth on Tape

BEST USE:
A gateway drug for your pop-notized niece. Show her, gently, that there’s more to music than Miley Cyrus.

Is your younger sister a Jonas Brothers junkie? Does she keep Owl City on constant replay? Is Kelly Clarkson her idea of quality female rock? If these scenarios sound familiar, it may be time to introduce her to life outside America’s Top 40. Cue Smile Smile, a Dallas duo whose sophomore album, Truth on Tape, was released February 9th.

Ryan Hamilton and Jencey Hirunrusme were two musicians who fell in love. After producing an album, moving in together and getting engaged, infidelity followed. Truth on Tape is the chronicle of their relationship’s decay. Despite its emotional gravity, however, the 11-song collection gives off a light, sing-song vibe. It sounds, well, sophomoric.

The album begins with “Tempo Bledsoe,” which would have fit nicely on the Juno soundtrack; quirky synth effects and elementary vocals are discordant enough to grab listeners’ attention, but the combination doesn’t push its limits past “cute.” The songs that follow intermittently gain and lose depth — “Beg You to Stay” is irritatingly repetitive, though steady instrumental buildup and development provides some redemption in the album’s namesake, “Truth on Tape.”

Hamilton and Hirunrusme seem to forget all about the heartbreak that they claim as the theme of their album. Their Mazzy Star/Moldy Peaches feel is better suited to a playground picnic than a bitter breakup. Their product is pleasant, and listening is easy. Truth on Tape is flat and simple, making for marketable background music. Smile Smile provides a perfect transition for members of the younger generation who are growing tired of Ryan Seacrest’s suggestions, but aren’t yet ready for the Flaming Lips‘ weirdness or the Arctic Monkeys‘ intensity. Send a copy to your 12-year-old cousin; it’ll go great with her candy-pink nail polish.

Sources: http://www.kirtlandrecords.com/SmileSmile.htm

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