Gloriana Have A Little Bit Of Growing To Do

noah | August 3, 2009 10:00 am

Our look at the closing lines of the week’s biggest new-music reviews continues with a roundup of reactions to the self-titled debut from Gloriana, a country group that features among its members former reality-show star (and pal of dreadlocked American Idol hopeful Jason Castro) Cheyenne Kimball: • “It’s too bad because there’s certainly a lot of potential here, something producer Matt Serletic—best known for his work with Matchbox Twenty, as well as the still-unreleased Ryan Star album—mines very well. All that promise will likely make Gloriana country’s next sensation, but they will need to dig deeper to land success that’s any broader than that.” [Newsday] • “But the simpler tunes someone sneaked onto the end (‘Come and Save Me,’ ‘Time to Let Me Go’) show promise. Lose the tinny, cheesy overproduction and half of the hair product, and these kids might have something.” [Whitney Pastorek, EW] • “Sometimes, this approach is entirely too slick, particularly when the rhythms are pounding too hard on ‘Wild at Heart’ and ‘You Said,’ but at their best, Gloriana can evoke the forgotten charms of ’70s studio-centric soft rock in both its mellow and rocking incarnations, giving the ballads a lilting touch of grace and pushing the hooks and guitars so hard on ‘How Far Do You Wanna Go?’ and ‘If You’re Leaving’ that they recall nothing less than prime Rick Springfield. ” [Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide]

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