Josh Ottum

Watch TV

BY Michael EdwardsPublished Jul 19, 2011

When power pop is done well, it's a glorious thing ― think Matthew Sweet at his peak. But when it isn't, it's bland and derivative ― think Matthew Sweet not at his peak. Josh Ottum is currently somewhere in-between. Watch TV sounds like a work in progress because the songs run the gamut of being overproduced right through to needing a little more attention. Ottum isn't shy declaring his love of GarageBand, but that doesn't necessarily translate into a deft touch using it. Instead, he has a tendency to throw in too many little quirky moments, which make the songs cluttered. It's only when he keeps it simple and short that the tracks shine, and those moment are too infrequent to make Watch TV a success. But until he learns that a song should only be seven minutes long when it has enough ideas to justify that decision, Ottum will be making patchy albums when he's clearly capable of more.
(Tapete)

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