It’s hard not to feel a twinge of sympathy for
Ryan Star, one of the most promising contestants on 2006’s Rock Star: Supernova. He lost, not even making it to the final rounds, but he was well loved by the audience and producers, brought back toward the end of the season for a cameo, but he never could quite get a studio album off the ground until 2010 when he released
11:59. It was long enough for
Star’s presence to be slightly diminished -- he kept working, opening for David Cook and appearing on Opie & Anthony’s morning zoo -- but
11:59 is the kind of slick, splashy debut designed to launch a career that has no ties to television. It’s a cleanly commercial collection of atmospheric anthems, passionate pleading, manicured rocking, and snappy AAA pop.
11:59 falls somewhere between
Rob Thomas --
Matchbox Twenty’s producer Matt Serletic did produce this -- and
Coldplay, something big, glassy, and bold, built on sturdy melodies to support this giant production. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine