Not quite funny enough to be a comedy album, but not entirely serious either, this debut album from Sool comes across much like the Barenaked Ladies, They Might Be Giants, or even Phish at times -- they possess an obviously high level of musicianship and the ability to write serious songs if they want to, but they have a basic inability to play it straight. Sool is more or less a showcase for Boston-based studio wizard Peter Weiss, who has produced albums by Willard Grant Conspiracy, among many others. He makes up one-third of Sool, along with Kevin Quinn and Neal Spaulding. All three swap instruments and vocal duties liberally, and with short found sound interludes interspersed between proper songs, the album exudes a loose, playful vibe. But when it's all said and done, Sool seem like just an excuse for playing around with sounds and recording techniques using all the vintage gear they've amassed over the years. This isn't a completely bad thing; it's makes for great headphone listening, and they do have some songs too. One of which, "Turpentine," begins as an NRBQ-style bar rocker before ascending to an earnestly beautiful soaring coda that will have listeners singing along despite themselves. ~ Jason Nickey