Jarrod Gorbel

Ten Years Older EP

[3/5]



Jarrod Gorbel recently shed the Honorary Title moniker for something a little more personal. The four acoustic-pop songs on the Ten Years Older EP are Gorbel’s first official solo offerings, folky appetizers to hold over fans till his upcoming full-length Devil’s Made A New Friend. Breezy, radio-ready songs like "A Moment Of Peace" and the title track are infectious guilty pleasures, and while the cheese factor is high on Gorbel’s lyrics– "Black skirt, red ribbon for detail/Fit and fill the lace so generously"–the songs stick strongly in your head.



Unfortunately, Ten Years Older is hardly a subtle pleasure, and any emotional depth achieved in Gorbel’s lyrics are washed away by über-glossy production and melodramatic vocals. For instance, the breathy, operatic conclusion of the title track is extremely silly, closer to James Blunt and Plain White T’s’ Tom Higgenson than Conor Oberst or Bruce Springsteen. Still, it’s easy on the ears, and if the soft-finger picking of “A Moment Of Peace” came on while perusing the cereal aisle at the grocery store, we wouldn’t be upset in the least. (SELF-RELEASED) Matt St. John



GO DOWNLOAD: “A Moment Of Peace”