The eponymous debut album from South Florida's
Humbert is a bit frustrating, since it both shows promise and is stifled by its own lack of imagination. There's little question that
Humbert has melodic skill and knows how to craft a dynamic, catchy song, but they're sometimes undone to their adherence to standard alterna-pop techniques like soft-loud dynamics and stop-start song structures. Occasionally, they make this formula work, but it sounds a little dated in 1999 -- which is too bad, since the group has written good, memorable melodies that would have more of an impact in a fresher setting. That said, the things that work on
Humbert do suggest that the band has a bright future ahead of them.