The untitled Sugar Ray is now the fourth album by this five-piece band from California, which scored a worldwide hit with Fly in 1998. However, the band never made a breakthrough in Europe, but maybe that will now succeed with the current successor. The album starts with crystal clear punk pop in the tradition of Weezer, Wheatus and our own Travoltas: fast metal riffs, pounding beats and sunny close
… harmony vocals that will make you want an ice cream. These first five songs are all gems, culminating in the song Satellites. On the second part of the album the band gets a bit confused and indulges in all kinds of style breaks such as Ours and Stay On, which sound like an average boy band. Just A Little, including slide guitar (!) And Disasterpiece, make an incomprehensible shot at stadium rock, which gives you a bad taste in your mouth as a punk popper. However, thanks to the fact that the songs are so well composed and the irresistible first half, Sugar Ray doesn't get a red card from me. (BP) _more
