Bone Simple, What Was Her Name?

Bone Simple has about two really interesting slow songs on their new disc, What Was Her Name? And then, unfortunately, there are literally seventeen other really bad songs. Various levels of folk-rock, and mainly below-average bar band stuff. There is no focus to this. Every couple of songs begins a new song cycle that bears no resemblance to the previous one, and none are memorable. Maybe…The Scabs by way of The Spin Doctors? And that’s an insult to those two bands. This stuff is lightweight, uninspired, and unambitious, like the band could be replaced by karaoke at whatever patio they are playing. While I really like those two songs I mentioned, you get the feeling that this album was recorded as an outlet, because at their live gigs, they’re forced to mainly do covers. I’ll put this one to bed with a sentence for their press kit: “Without a Ride” and “Daddy’s Grave,” while not at all similar to the rest of What Was Her Name?, stand out as utterly listenable, the first with a Sgt. Pepper’s feel and the latter with a decidedly Opry-like effect. The parity being symptomatic of the entire record.