Hanson

Artist : Hanson

Album : Underneath (Sony Music)

Hanson has grown up, alright, and fortunately, they have safely crossed the Macaulay Culkin troubled transition period.

That high-pitched girly voice? Gone. Long blonde locks a la Nelson? Gone. Mmmbop? No more.

The three boys seem to have trained themselves quite well in playing music, as the talent was already shown on their first album, thanks to old school stuff like B.B. King they have been fed.

The sound on this record is toward rock, with the electric guitar playing of the oldest one Zac apparent throughout the album.

They talk about girls, of course, in "liquid, melancholy dreams", in Crazy Beautiful, a track nicely highlighted with a horn section. Angst and confusion also appear, such as in Strong Enough to Break.

To a certain extent, however, the songs eerily sound like a cross between Def Leppard and Nelson (check out Dancin' In The Wind). And despite a more mature and crafted sound, there is no number as catchy or feel-good like Mmmbop or Where's The Love.

But as far as a transition album goes, this one can be taken into account. -- Hera Diani