Gloriana - Gloriana Review

Let a band like Little Big Town taste a little success and, invariably, another group will come along and try to be them, too.  So it goes with Gloriana.  The problem is, the former seems organic whereas the latter seems to be manufactured and over produced.

Brothers Tom and Mike Gossin form the core of the band, which also includes former winner of the America's Most Talented Kid reality show, Chyenne Kimbal  and Georgia  native Rachel Reinert.  The band Gloriana came into existence in 2008 and appears to have been rushed through the "photogenic twenty-something harmonizing pop/country band" assembly line.  The members of the band had a hand in writing only one, the last, track on the album.  Instead the bulk of it was co-written by the man who produced this collection, Matt Serletic.  Now the man is no slouch, having worked with acts like Matchbox Twenty and Blessed Union of Souls, but the problem is  a young band singing other people's songs with slick production is gonna sound artificial, like the album Gloriana.

That's not to say these obviously talented artists don't sometimes rise to the occasion. The first track How Far Do You Wanna Go?, is a blatant nod to Fleetwood Mac (too bad Little Big Town turned that trick first and better).  But, for the most part the band pulls it off.

Wild at Heart is the first single and showcases both what is right and wrong with Gloriana.  The harmonies are pitch perfect but the production is slick and the rhythms pound you right in your face.  It's a bully song.  After one listen I felt at though I'd been beat up by it.

The ballads tend to work best, as they are not so overblown.  In fact, songs like Come and Save Me, about unexpected love found among the ruins, showcases some tender vocal abilities.

The song that works best for me is the only song any of the band members wrote, Time To Let Me Go is a break up song featuring some earnest vocals with a bluegrass feel.  The harmonies are tight and the track is the only one on this "country" album that feels authentic at all.

THE BOTTOM LINE

Gloriana is the kind of pumped-up countrified pop album that might just be snapped up by the young masses, with its pounding rhythms and young, good-looking, sweet harmonizing band members.  But, the recipe for good country music, even with pop flavoring thrown in, includes a couple tablespoons of soul and this record seems mostly devoid of that. The singers have talent and the producer has cred, but, the next time they decide to bake some brownies, they should remember to add the eggs.  GRADE: C