This album starts off with “Vin Mariani”, and right off the bat we see Baio dealing with some thicker tones and some nice synths, as well as some seriously classy horns. Honestly, this track really isn't that bad at all. Chris even seems more in control of his voice. If Chris is going to continue down this path of “Classy” indie pop, this is certainly already a whole lot more enjoyable than any of the tracks in his past. It’s triumphant, and most important it’s not nearly as full of itself. No, “Vin Mariani” isn’t bad at all, I don’t even mind it being almost 5 minutes long. But just as classy as this one starts, Baio has to give us the nearly unlistenable “The Key Is Under The Mat”. It’s just a serious mess and a clash of all of these sounds that really don’t work in Chris’s favor. Clearly the Vampire Weekend influence is huge on this one, but this really doesn't come off at all. The vocals here are just so boring, not to mention they really don’t fit with any of the sounds that Chris is working with. “The Key Is Under The Mat” in the long run is seriously the epitome of everything I really don’t like about Chris’s music at all. But listening to this album, you’re going to realize that some of these slower jams here like “Out of Tune” just come off so much more classy and interesting. I actually like Chris’s vocals on this one quite a bit, the way he’s almost doing a sort of rockabilly impression. Not to mention, that chorus is actually seriously infectious. While this album isn’t going to make any huge changes in my life, I think overall this is a big improvement for Chris. I still think he needs to stick to some of these slower and more intimate songs, because it’s when he speeds things up that I feel like things get sloppy. But “Out Of Tune” remains seriously catchy and I can totally vibe with it. Then we have “PHILOSOPHY!” which not for nothing might be the best track Chris Baio has every penned. This track is seriously funky, and the catchy hooks reach an absolute peak here. I feel like two years ago if Chris went for this sort of track it would have ended up being an absolute mess. But no, “PHILOSOPHY!” comes off sort of sleazy but most of all seriously fun. Hell, I can even see this one getting some minor club or indie radio airplay. So far, this really isn’t half bad.
But just as soon as I get done complimenting how far Chris has come, we get the “Exquisite Interlude”. All I have to say is, what the hell is this? First of all, when Christ does this stupid inflection on his voice he comes off as such an arrogant ass that I can’t take him seriously. Then we have the sheer asinine nature of this song in general. “Exquisite Interlude” is a round up of everything I’ve hated about Chris’s solo work. Overall this track is ridiculously arrogant and cheesy. Not to mention, it’s a serious waste of space. And worst of all, it ushers in a slew of Chris’s worst tracks yet. For example, we have the very heavy and synth based “DANGEROUE ANAMAL”. To be honest, hearing the heavy synths I really felt like I would have dug this one quite a bit. But Chris’s very hushed vocals on this one come off seriously awkward. To be honest, a whole lot of this one just comes off really strange and bizarre. So much so, that at this point I honestly would take the much more snobbish and arrogant bars we heard earlier compare to whatever the hell this is supposed to be. “DANGEROUE ANAMAL” is seriously very confusing. Not to mention, the sort of dark undertones to these lyrics and vocals make this even MORE confusing. And why is this track well over 5 minutes? Please stop Chris. It becomes very clear very fast that slower tunes aren’t the answer for Chris like I thought earlier. “Man Of The World” shows up next, and I honestly feel like I’ve heard less braggadocios lyrics on a Rick Ross album. But Chris here tries to spin it all in some sort of sweet sentiment that doesn’t end up working at all. These sort of Spanish sounding guitars dominating this one just come off as such a cheap way to make Chris’s music sound so diverse when it really isn’t. “Man Of The World” is just so damn weak. Shockingly though, “Sensitive Guy” works for Chris almost immediately. I get almost a weird sort of Regina Spektor vibe from this, but it really works great. It’s upbeat and very quaint sounding. Not to mention, I get an actual sort of pop feel to this that this album has been lacking for a while now. And while “Sensitive Guy” might have the most laughably cheesy chorus I’ve heard all year, it actually works out great for Chris. It’s sweet, and it’s probably the most human track we’ve heard here in a while.
“I’m Not Curious” begins the final leg of our journey here with Baio, and to be honest right from the intro it’s not very promising. Here, we have another sort of sluggish pop sound, which I usually wouldn’t be to pissed at. But oh god, there are just way too many moments on this track that I feel like Chris is trying way too hard to sound like he’s edgy while he’s really not. I mean, Chris here is dripping his voice in so many effects here that I feel like he absolutely slapped on just for the hell of it. Then we have the very experimental sounding instrumentals, which to be honest I really don’t want to hear from anyone associated with Vampire Weekend. I hate to say it, but some of the straight up pop tunes on here have been by far the most engaging and interesting. “I’m Not Curious” is seriously miserable. Plus, why the hell is this track so damn gloomy? I feel like some of the best moments here have been fun, I couldn't get behind a gloomy Chris Baio if I needed to. Not to mention those highly repetitive synths make this one even more insufferable. “Shame In My Name” is up next, and just looking at the six and a half minute time stamp is absolutely killing me. But I actually do like some of the very hip dance grooves on this one. On “Shame In My Name”, I feel like Chris actually took his time with this to make it sound good. Once again, we’re dealing with some more abstract sounds. But if he’s going for that, I feel like this is where it should end as well. “Shame In My Name” is tolerable, but if it was any more out there I wouldn’t be behind it. I really love his more subdued vocals on this one as well as some of the more subdued instrumentals. But outside of that, “Shame In My Name” is just ok. It’s certainly not nearly as cringe worth as some of the earlier tracks. But at the same time, I’m literally getting almost nothing new and refreshing from this at all. This track at the end of the day is sort of just here. Not to mention, the last 3 minutes is a complete waste of my time. This album ends with “Be Mine”, and to be honest, it’s pretty damn fun sounding. I feel like Chris needs to keep these tracks as straightforward as humanly possible. Because as a straightforward catchy pop tune that I can really enjoy, “Be Mine” is actually really good. Plus, it contains so many of the sweetest sentiments on here, which is unbelievably refreshing. So it’s not like Chris can’t write a pop tune, but boy does he ever need to work on his consistency.
Rating: 6.3/10
Give A Listen To: "Reverence", "Data Demon (feat. GABi)", "4EVA (feat. Talvi)", "Running To Evaporate"
Overall Thoughts: I mean yea, this is certainly a big improvement from Baio's first album, I feel like I can actually remember some of the songs on here. But I don't know, I seriously feel like Chris's attempt at this very refined and "Classy" indie pop falls ridiculously flat. Between some of the arrogant lyrics and some of the more experimental beats which Baio sounds totally awkward on, this album is seriously a mess. I feel like Baio is a good pop song writer, not great, but good, and he really needs to stick to that in the future.
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