Matthew Jay
““Draw””
(Capitol Records)
Matthew Jay is yet another moddish export from the UK, bearing an uncanny resemblance to Richard Ashcroft, though he’s far sweeter than his bitter countryman; which isn’t necessarily a good thing. The songs on Draw are uniformly decent. The album would be a useful educational tool for explaining our music to outer-space aliens: “Now, this here is your average basic alterna-acousti-Brit-pop.” It’s got all the requisites: lovely, gentle strumming, a pleasant, soulful voice, and na-na-na chants. Too bad it’s so damned boring. Each generically pretty song blends uneventfully into the next, and it’s easy to forget that the whole album isn’t one long track. Draw is the musical equivalent of watching paint dry. Sure, it’s easy to appreciate the artistry at first, but after five minutes it’s you’’re ready to move on.
