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At times, Ours front man Jimmy Gnecco sounds like he's begging for comparisons to Jeff Buckley, U2 and Radiohead. It's an inescapable fact of this CD. The comparison to the latter is the strongest, right down to the Kid A-esque jacket art. Musically, the new CD is probably closest to Radiohead's earlier albums. "Top 12 Songs That Didn't Quite Make It On The Bends" might have been a nice title, if Distorted Lullabies was already taken. Gnecco's song writing is also nigh to Thom Yorke's style. A scan through the track listing proves this point. Titles like "Miseryhead" and "Medication" might send Yorke to the patent office to see if they've been copyrighted. 

I can't help comparing this record to Coldplay's debut album, Parachutes. Coldplay and Ours are both younger bands trying to find their niche in similar musical climates. Both seem to be in conscious imitation of Radiohead, among others. However, Coldplay is the nice guy side of Radiohead, and Ours is the melancholy side. Coldplay is at times mellow enough to qualify as easy listening, Ours has a harder sound. By casting themselves so clearly in a certain musical vein, both bands run the risk of the "nothing original" criticism 
being leveled at them, and it's a fair criticism. 

Distorted Lullabies is a dark and somber record, musically and lyrically. "Goth-rock," as some call it, is not the metaphor I would have chosen, but it is a handy way of summing it up. Suffice to say that Ours dips their musical paintbrush in black a little too often. "I enjoy feeling sad sometimes, because at least you're feeling something --you know you're alive," Gnecco says. That's fair enough. I would even go so far as to say that there is a certain degree of profoundness to that statement. However, I wouldn't consider this record a good birthday gift for a friend predisposed to becoming gloomy. "I put my hands to the sky/ Pray for a sign if I believed in a god" is a sample lyric ("Bleed"). 

Far from bad, this record is encouraging for a few reasons. First, while it isn't that original and while it lacks the subtleties and intricacies of the more mature groups it wants to imitate, it's refreshing to see someone with high-minded musical goals. The selfish and egotistical American in me is also glad to see a bunch of guys from New Jersey (!) doing this sort of thing. *NSync's PopOdessy Tour may prove that we have showbiz down pat in America, but these days it seems like Europe has the embarrassment of musical riches. 

Speaking of boy bands, it's refreshing that Ours doesn't try to soft-sell life. Britney Spears, Justin Timberlake and their lot might have us believe that life's biggest problem is the fact that 17-year-old boyfriends can occasionally be jerks. Ours knows that there are bigger problems out there. Gnecco bemoans such problems, but frequently fails to take it one step farther by drawing those problems out into the light where they can be mulled in a sort of community atmosphere. Ours is more of a personal lament of what Gnecco sees in the world around him and in his own life. Great lyrics are intensely personal while grounding themselves in a sort of shared human experience. Gnecco doesn't quite have the balance that great songwriters have, but he's well on his way. At the same time, Distorted Lullabies is a step above the cheap, dime-a-dozen teenage angst lyrics you'll find on the alternative airwaves today. 

It is clear that Gnecco is aiming higher than the basic trends in music today. Unfortunately, he fails to hit the mark on a few points. Even so, no one should be criticized for setting lofty goals. Producer Steve Lillywhite also deserves credit for taking everything these songs have to give, and wringing it out of them. Lillywhite, also, did not let them languish in musical never-never land, as some songs these days are wont to do. If more music moved in the direction Ours appears to be taking, the world would be a better place. OK, maybe that is overstatement, still a little artistic maturity never hurt anyone. Take  note now: Ours is one to watch in the future. 

Megan Lenz  (8/23/01)