June Star

Telegraph, June Star’s second release, seems so laid back that you wonder if it’s asleep. The band is made up of Timothy Bracken, Andrew Grimm, Tim Johnson, Tom Scanlan and Alan Zepp. The playing is unremarkable and Grimm’s vocals are droning and whiny. If the intention was to create a mood, I’m afraid June Star has missed their mark, which is too bad because Grimm’s lyrics are interesting and beg to go somewhere. If the vocals were more articulate, we might get a better sense of where he wants to take them. There is a glimpse of some Smithsonian old-time bluesy country folk on the CD, but June Star hasn’t pulled it off. Telegraph drags with an unearned laziness.