Fountains Of Wayne

Traffic And Weather

[3/5] Fountains Of Wayne’s brilliant, career-defining 2003 full-length Welcome Interstate Managers was somewhat overshadowed by the novelty success of the fun, flirty single “Stacy’s Mom,” which was almost too infectious. Managers is a power-pop masterpiece, and unfortunately, sets the bar extremely high for any FOW follow-up; thus their latest, Traffic And Weather, inevitably falls short, despite its winning moments (particularly the country-tinged “Fire In The Canyon” and “Yolanda Hayes,” a humorous ode to a captivating DMV attendant). One of the problems is FOW songwriting gurus Adam Schlesinger and Chris Collingwood have become so skilled, their trademark character sketches sometimes seem like mere creative exercises, devoid of the band’s previous pulse. Sure, it’s super-cool that FOW can craft a catchy ditty about waiting for luggage (“Michael And Heather At The Baggage Claim”), or geeked-out rides (“’92 Subaru”), but it’s something they’ve done better before. (VIRGIN) Brendan Manley