Under control, but under-developed
In 2004, Cary Brothers’ song “Blue Eyes” was deemed apt-to-change-your-life-by-association when Zach Braff included it on the soundtrack for Garden State. It was beautiful and sincere, even without the visual cues or heart-strings-tugging back story provided by the film.
Despite ample piano chords and lyrics of heartbreak, the 10 tracks on Brothers’ most recent release, Under Control, do not pack the same punch. Songs such as “Can’t Take My Eyes Off of You” and “Alien” are languid and unlikely to spur any more emotional awakening than a lullaby. Other tracks, notably “After the Fall” and “Someday,” boast quicker tempos but are predictably even keeled to a fault. There’s a spark of life on “Break Off the Bough,” but it’s not enough to redeem the rest of the album, which is made up of songs that would feel more at home on the next Twilight saga soundtrack than one for a film that honors true emotional complexity.