Mae
Destination: Beautiful
2003, Tooth & Nail
pop, rock
½

As the debut album of the band Mae, it’s really sad how good this album is in comparison to their most recent Singularity. Destination: Beautiful might be as pop and feel-good as its title implies, but it’s obviously the more honest and comfortable fit for this band. Elkins’s voice isn’t brilliant (as usual) but at least the songs are written with that fact in mind, and he isn’t forced to sound like a wailing cat when hitting the higher notes.

Sound-wise, the songs are a mix of pop and some rock, but they aren’t what you’d stylistically expect from this band. They’re obviously willing to take chances in their styles (every song has its distinct sound) and yet work to keep all of their songs cohesive to a certain extent. The biggest surprise is that they succeed; at the end of the album, you’ll realize that you’ve been on a sonic journey that was smoother and more eventful than most so-called concept albums. After hearing this and Singularity, I think Mae’s move from Tooth & Nail was the biggest mistake they made in their career. Somewhere along the line, this band lost their sincerity, charming naivete, and character.

“Summertime,” “Runaway,” “This Time Is The Last Time.”
myspace, last.fm
Mae’s Singularity, Provincial Park’s Iron Ponies EP