This is a tough review for me. I respect the composition and the production, but I just can't deal with the vocal delivery. It's much too soft and boyish and Ben Gibbard-y for my taste.
Now, I'd like to think I have the ability to get outside of my own weird sensibilities and appreciate things for what they are, but the truth is, I don't think there's such a thing as objectivity regarding the quality of a given work of art. All we critics have is our opinion and the more you try to substantiate it as fact, the more you discredit your own effort. So even though I recognize that plenty of people will probably enjoy this sort of vocal delivery, I have to come clean and admit I don't. The good thing is, the vocal delivery is the only element that really turns me off.

What does work for me is the guitar work, very nice and pleasant, twee meets alt-country wedded with indie pop. The piano on "Apartment" is an excellent complement to the guitar picking, and the wet vocals on the first two-thirds of the song sound much more pleasing to my ears than the section of clarity that follows. Despite my petty gripes with the unforgivably undangerous vocals, I think there are probably a great number of people who could enjoy this record. So it seems it would be improper of me to completely castigate it. After all, I do see talent in this band. For peaceful, reflective, poppy soft alt-country, this is a competent, and somewhat successful, debut.

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