Although hampered by one of the most self-consciously dorky album covers in recent memory,
Jody Whitesides' fifth solo album maintains the same level of amiable pop/rock competence as his earlier records. There are some neat pop/rock hooks here (the chorus of "Falling In" is particularly nice), but
Whitesides is an anonymous vocalist and mediocre lyricist, and the sterile production lacks any sense of the analogue warmth that permeates even the most fussy and manicured '70s pop album. Despite the many flaws,
Practical Insanity is such a genial record that it's impossible to actively hate it, yet it's equally impossible to work up much genuine enthusiasm for it. ~ Stewart Mason