Combining the droning rhythms and Teutonic synth textures of
Stereolab with the indie pop tunefulness of
Velocity Girl or
the Sundays, the second album by England's
Saloon,
If We Meet in the Future, is very much like the band's first -- a nice, pleasant record. Tracks like "Absence" and "The Good Life" bubble along nicely, with Amanda Gomez's pastoral vocals draped across banks of synths, strings, and strummed guitars. A few of the tunes, like "Happy Robots" and "The Good Life," sound like they were boosted right out of the
Stereolab playbook, but not in a bad way -- more of a tribute than wholesale thievery. "Kaspian" is a nice change of pace and atmosphere, with a stuttering beat and no chugging guitars, as is "Intimacy," which makes good use of a near hip-hop beat. The main problem with the album is that it lacks a sense of excitement or emotion. The songs sound pretty enough, but really have nothing going on beneath the surface. No hooks, no lyrical drama, no surprises, nothing at all inside the pretty package. In fact, there is really no reason to listen to
If We Meet in the Future more than once, which is too bad because the band has so much going for it. Chalk it up as a disappointment but don't give up on
Saloon quite yet; they may still fit the pieces together. ~ Tim Sendra