All About Chemistry

03/26/2001 9:52 PM, Yahoo! Music
Mike Lipton

Finally, a near-perfect pop disc from Minneapolis's Semisonic. While the band has always hinted it had the right stuff to deliver a truly great record, Chemistry is the first of the band's three releases to make good on the promise. Over five years, the trio, half of the defunct Trip Shakespeare, has quietly (with the exception of 1998's R.E.M.-sounding hit "Closing Time") evolved into one of country's best purveyors of smart pop. If musically, the title track recalls Warren Zevon's "Werewolf Of London," that's (thankfully) where the similarity ends. With mixes by heavyweights Bob Clearmountain and Tom Lord-Alge, the sounds are big but not trite or overblown. In fact, they've dialed back considerably the mix of guitars that often served to obscure the tunes. "Act Naturally" is a gorgeous ballad that, in the wrong hands, could have been an arena BIC lighter hit while songwriter Dan Wilson's gentle voice caresses the sentimental "Follow." On the tougher side are the Beatlesque "Who's Stopping Her" and the infectious "Get A Grip" (with a verse that's sure to remind you of that great, Top 40 sailor's tale "Brandy").