The Weepies
Be My Thrill
Nettwerk Records
The Weepies are back with a solid collection of TV-friendly songs that dance around the joys and mysteries of dating and living with another person. The arrangements are refreshingly simple, chords are well-behaved, and their vocal stylings are warm and inviting like a fresh baked apple pie and a cold glass of milk. Steve Tannen and Deb Talan had independent careers until they met at a show and discovered they played so well together that they should make records and babies.
The fresh face of love drips out of every cut and “I Was Made for Sunny Days” leaps out as a potential hit, mixing the heartfelt positivism of a country love song with a not-quite-rock-and-roll guitar line that bounces along like Tigger on a pogo stick. The slower songs are brilliant as well. “They’re in Love, Where Am I?” reads as a depressing lyric, but little acoustic touches like squeaky nylon guitar strings and an occasional glockenspiel riff brighten it up, and you know Talan is just joshing us about her prospects. By “Be My Thrill” she’s brightened up enormously, found a guy, and he’s not even a jerk. You can’t keep this duo down, and “Be My Honey Pie” features Tannen’s vocals as the nice guy who actually listens when you’ve had a bad day. The title sounds sappy and it truly is, but it’s delivered with the sort of straight-faced earnestness that forces you to find a kitten and say “Awwww…” In other words, The Weepies have broken though my jaded rock and roll heart, and renewed my belief in romance and happiness.
Now I need to lie down and listen to some Swedish death metal for a few hours. Please excuse me.
The Weepies: http://www.theweepies.com
