At first it was a surprise to discover that the sound of Californian commercial indie was alive and well in Venice, but that was before discovering there's a place called Venice Beach in California, and that was home to the chaps from Terraplane Sun. New EP 'Friends' sounds very much like the product of it's environment, mixing in elements of the US alternative scene with sunshine pop. It teeters on the brink of being too sanitised and therefore lovers of less polished sounds are unlikely to find much of interest here, but if you're happy with some nicely written and easily approachable pop songs then jump on in. Although this all seems very polite and family friendly, it's not as bland or orthodox as you might expect, with the quintet mixing in blues, soul, country and folk into their songs, plus they're capable of penning some decent tunes.
When they aim for the middle of the road things can get a bit weak; 'Ya Never Know' is grasping for soul and only just manages to find some as it nears the end when the lead vocal is joined brass and backing vocals, and 'Tell Me I'm Wrong', like the EP in general, would benefit from having a bit more bite, but in truth Terraplane Sun aren't attempting to be in any way edgy here. So if you take songs like 'Get Me Golden' and 'Stuck In The Middle' for what they are you'll find some well made music that will appeal to fans of many genres, plus it's nice to see a band, however radio-friendly, attempting to add some diversity. The title-track does manage to find that soul and even has a hint of Neil Young to it with the epic ending being a definite highlight. 'Friends' is a perfectly passable EP, but a few more frayed edges wouldn't go amiss.
Terraplane Sun's website
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