Review Summary: The Goo Goo Dolls are still Gloo Gloo’d to their old sound.
There’s an old pessimistic saying about change, and that the only two things exempt from it are death and taxes. It seems that a third item can be tentatively added to that expression, namely the Goo Goo Dolls. Truthfully I haven’t listened to a full album since 1998’s magnificent
Dizzy Up The Girl, although I have heard the catchy, radio-dominating singles of their later work such as “Here Is Gone” and “Before It’s Too Late”. As I assumed, they were impressive rock tracks that were interminably stuck in my head. The distinct vocals of John Rzeznik still guided the ‘Dolls through sublime guitar arrangements, following a rudimentary but effective pop-alt-rock style. While
Something For The Rest Of Us is not a bad album by a long stretch, it’s more of the same.
A few spins of the album confirms it. The unmistakable, well treaded sound of the iconic band that brought us such greats as “Iris” and “Slide” is brought back out into the limelight and given a brusque once-over with a slightly slower, easier-going sheen. Songs like “As I Am”, “Nothing Is Real” and “One Night” feature this sound prominently, while other tracks like “Home” and “Sweetest Lie” stay truer to higher-energy, less subdued rock outings.
However, soft rock ballads compose the meat of
Something For The Rest Of Us. It’s a testament to the ‘Dolls that the touching, smooth flowing honey-for-the-ears is still at premium quality. “Notbroken”, “Still Your Song”, the engrossing “Hey Ya” and eponymous “Something For The Rest Of Us” (arguably the best track) are swirling, airy melodies reminiscent of their bountiful back catalogue of brother and sister tracks. If nothing else,
Something For The Rest Of Us is a succinct representation of the Goo Goo Dolls’ refined talent for scaled back, cathartic rock ballads.
Just as expected, John Rzeznik is still the soul of the ‘Dolls. His mellow, inviting singing tempered by years of sensational blockbusters is as tender and powerful as ever. It may be due to “Iris” and the deep love I have for it, but John’s performances on “Still Your Song” and “Hey Ya” connect and reproduce a feeling remarkably similar. Perhaps that’s another draw of John’s voice; the ‘Dolls have been around for many years and their fans, whether casual or hardcore, hold a particular candle to their stellar hits of yesteryear. The streamlined sound exhibited here definitely contains the same charm.
One thing that continues to baffle me about the Goo Goo Dolls is the decision to let Robby Takac repeatedly ruin songs with that hoarse, unrefined wailing. His endless mission to channel
Dude Ranch-era Tom DeLonge by way of a bucket of gravel persists unabated, bringing down the quality and enjoyment of the songs in which he manages to push Rzeznik away from the microphone. The one plus that can be said for
Something For The Rest Of Us in relation to Takac’s voice is that it’s been limited to a few tracks towards the back-end of the album. The negative, of course, is that those songs are actually pretty good until he starts croaking. Please Robby, let John sing lead. I don’t care if you
think you sound good. It’s been
twenty years already.
However, what disappoints me about this album is the wasted potential. Sure, the ‘Dolls have been around for over two decades and they’ve forged a comfortable, reliable sonic couch for themselves in the lounge room of mainstream music. They’ve had a long, productive career and they’ve arguably earned the right to churn out their trademark sound from now to everlasting. Yet there is this niggling feeling that the ‘Dolls, if they applied themselves, could create something vastly more unique and outstanding. While I would be suitably content to gleefully nod along and belt out an immensely inferior version of John Rzeznik with each passing album, nothing would please me more than to hear the ‘Dolls expand and experiment with their established sound. After their storied experience surely they could dip their toes in the water.
Ultimately, this is Goo Goo Dolls. It’s consistent, engaging mainstream rock just as it always has been. If you were like me and were astounded to discover they were still making music (albeit pleasantly astounded), then
Something For The Rest Of Us includes something for you.
