Fonda

Baffling, truly baffling. Why would California's Fonda set out to sound like two deceased British indie bands? With the CD's nice brown and pink packaging, one would think that the music would be some nice, shimmering pop music. Fonda's debut album, The Strange and the Familiar, sounds a little too identical to Lush and, at times, Sleeper - two bands who were not the most exciting to listen to, but at the same time had some decent songs (more Lush than Sleeper). It's possible that their sound is an accident and if that's the case, well, no, it's still unforgivable, but there are some songs that do shine on the record. "Cape May" and "People and Stars," the only songs sung by David Klotz, sound almost like a different band (meaning unlike Lush or Sleeper). Emily Cook's songs are not bad songs, in fact they are quite good, it's just that we may have all heard them before when they were being released by 4AD. While the music world is not exactly mourning the departures of Sleeper and Lush, it's good to know that there is a band out there that will deliver new music in case one person does miss them.